


Just Desserts

by Jacque_le_Prince



Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Asian-American Character, Bands, Biracial Character, Blackmail, Crossdressing, Demisexuality, F/F, Female Character of Color, Female Characters, Female Protagonist, Gay Male Character, Grey-Asexual Character, Implied Sexual Content, Korean-American Character, Light-Hearted, Male-Female Friendship, Misgendering, Native American Character(s), Pansexual Character, Racism, Romantic Comedy, love stage inspired
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-29
Updated: 2016-07-26
Packaged: 2018-02-27 09:35:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 30,885
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2687915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jacque_le_Prince/pseuds/Jacque_le_Prince
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>With a successful stylist mother who makes small talk with big actors, college graduate Skylar Lalit is offered chances to be on the big screen everyday of her life. However, her passion lies within the music career she shares with her highschool friend and their duo, E-Claire, but one day, she ends up doing a photo shoot she just can’t refuse. There, she’s reunited with a hauntingly familiar face from years ago. New feelings develop and controversy arises.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Ambrosia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Based loosely off of the manga/anime "Love Stage".

She fell out of bed again at the sound of the pink alarm clock. One would think with as long as she has had that thing, she would no longer be startled by it, but no. Every so often, her body would convulse to wake by the classic ringing that tiny metal hammer would create between its bells.

The young woman groaned as she struggled to climb back into her twin bed. However, she paused in her movements when the savory scent of sweet ham wafted across her nostrils.

" _Breakfast…?_ " her still-closed eye lids bounced slightly as the thought scampered across her mind.

* * *

Glistening copper syrup gently pooled onto the slab of sizzling ham as a fork sliced the omelet beside it before lifting the small bite into the young woman's awaiting mouth.

"Your appetite is impeccable as always," commented the middle-aged man beside her. His creased skin was a reddish bronze. Amongst his greying hair, there were specks of black hair. His bespectacled brown eyes were hooded over with age.

"Hm, I've never seen anyone pour syrup on their ham and eggs before," an older woman said with distaste before popping a grape into her mouth past her mauve lips. Many wouldn't believe that she was just as aged as her spouse sitting across from her. Tenaciously applied make up and gracious up-keeping of her sheen black waves was enough to fool anyone that she wasn't a day over thirty.

"So Skylar, now that's you've finished college, what are your plans?" the dark-haired woman innocently asked.

The young woman nervously swallowed her orange juice when an awkward silence had followed that question.

"I've already told you that I planned to officially jumpstart E-Claire with Micah," the young woman said before bringing a piece of ham up to her mouth.

"Oh come on, now, Skylar," laughed the older woman "I'm talking about a real career, not a hobby."

"It _is_ a career, Mom," affirmed Skylar, frowning slightly.

The older woman wiped her chin clean of nonexistent debris "Oh please, you'll grab at the slim opportunity to become some butch pop star, but you turn down every modeling and acting offer you receive?"

Furrowing her brows in a stubborn expression, Skylar muttered "That's because I don't want to be an actress or model. I've said that before."

"But Skylar, you're such a beautiful girl!" the mother spoke out with sudden passion and a fire in her grey eyes "And the world would be able to see that if you showed it!"

Skylar shared the same reddish skin as her father, but watered down due to her mother's white skin. She had modestly thin lips and an angular nose that was only complimented by her slanted caramel eyes. Silky strands of ink black hair were cut smoothly into a boy-styled cut, delicate bangs touching her arched eyebrows.

"But no, you decide to hide behind a microphone," the mother sighed, flipping her hair over her silk-robed shoulder "Is it just misfortune? Or have I raised you wrong?"

Skylar knew the woman didn't mean the last question. The day her mother admitted to a mistake was the day hell froze over.

"Can we talk about this another time?" the daughter dismissed "I mean, I just graduated last night."

Surprisingly, the mother inclined her head in a nod, the compliant smile that often rested on her face returning "You're right, Skylar. After all, the dining table is never a place for conflict."

However, the young woman had managed to sneak several bites of her meal between arguments with her mother. Even though her stomach burned for seconds, Skylar pushed herself away from the table, dirtied dish and utensils in her hands, and made her way to the kitchen where the family maid was.

"Good morning, Skylar," a curvaceous woman with glossy locks of velvet red hair stood over the dishwasher as she loaded it with pots and pans. A warm smile laced her pale pink lips that seemed to make her sapphire eyes seem to glow even more.

"Morning, Marilyn," replied Skylar as she handed the red-head her plate.

When the woman bent down to place the platter and utensils in the dishwasher, Skylar frowned ever so slightly, biting her lip in worry.

The maid rose, instantly catching Skylar's discontent.

"What's wrong, dearie?" she asked.

The young woman flinched "Oh! Nothing, nothing at all," she reassured "I was just thinking…" her voice tapered off before a short sigh leaked through her lips "I wanted to go visit Micah today."

"Oh that's wonderful, Skylar," commented Marilyn in all optimism.

However, the young woman didn't share the same view "No, but Mom-"

She left the remainder of the sentence to rest on her tongue.

Marilyn nodded "I understand. If either of your parents ask, I'll give them a proper explanation," she said with sober, yet reassuring eyes.

Skylar grinned widely "Thank you, Marilyn!" she cheered as she wrapped her arms around the older woman. In response, the maid gasped lightly as pink painted her cheeks.

* * *

Music flooded into the young woman's ears, which her short, black hair tickled as the wind threaded its fingers through it- or as much as it could through the red helmet.

Every once in a while, a few hushed lyrics would spill through the woman's pursed lips "…head in the clouds g-got no weight on my shoulders-s; I should be wiser and-d realize that I've got-t…" although, the lyrics would come out shaky and disturbed from the unsteady ground her bike tires drove on.

She had rode through the forest area to avoid the dangers of traffic and also to avoid possible passerby on the sidewalk. Her red high top sneaker rested on the ground, putting her bike to a halt at the mouth of the forest. Before her, the sidewalk had smoothened out for those who wanted to enter the forest through the actual entrance. At this point, she knew she would have to enter the bike lane in the remainder of the trip.

After checking both sides to make sure she wouldn't run into any passerby, the woman rolled out into the street, smoothly shifting her bike into the bicycle lane.

There weren't any cars driving by, so the music in Skylar's ears wasn't webbed with the hums of engines. It was even more peaceful when she paused at a stoplight…for the moment.

Vibrations tickled the soles of her feet that made her look up immediately. In front of her, a limousine strolled by with the smoothness of a carefree man. She could instantly tell that the vehicle was the source of the vibrations and recognized the rhythm as music just as quickly. However, something about the melody emanating from the limousine struck her as hauntingly familiar.

The aggressive honk of minivan yanked Skylar out of her stupor, an erect middle finger grazing her ego.

With a huff, the young woman pressed on, respectfully moving along the traffic. Eventually, she turned and guided her bike onto the concrete that led up to a modest house. Skylar hopped off of her bike and began to walk it up to the driveway when-

"There you are!" a flamboyant male voice cheered.

Walking out of the house was a young man of a modest height. He was Asian with sandy ginger hair in a very neat and orderly cut and eyes as dark as the brown earth.

"M-Micah?" stammered Skylar in surprise "How did you know I would be coming?"

"Please, I know my Sky," waved off the male as the girl walked up the walkway towards the porch where he stood "I expect a bucket load of more visits now that you're out of school."

Skylar parked her bike in the corner, set her helmet on the handlebar and put her MP3 and earbuds into her black fanny pack.

"C'mon," chirped Micah as he opened the door for his female guest to enter the house.

Just as the door closed behind her, Skylar asked "So, how many views have we got so far on the video?"

"Last I checked, it reached eighty-five," answered Micah.

Skylar spun around on her heel "Are you serious?" she gasped "It was just posted last week!"

The young man confidently strode past her "I know," he said "Imagine how much more popularity we'll get now that you're free."

The statement would have sounded hollow compared to normal producers of online videos, but for people like Skylar and Micah, it was only a realistic goal to hope for.

A sizzling crackle cut through the air as the metal of the can cracked open. Skylar plopped down on the carpet with a satisfying sigh before taking a sip of her coke.

"Getting comfy?" asked Micah as he approached the woman leaning on the bed.

Even though it was rhetorical and laced with sarcasm, Skylar replied with a polite "Yup, thanks for asking."

Micah seated himself in his own computer chair, sipping the same brand of soda through a straw "How are your parents feeling about E-Claire?" asked the young man after a modest moment of silence.

Skylar frowned "Mom still doubts us. And now that I'm out of school, she's more serious about me "getting a real job"," she managed to make air quotes while still holding her can in one hand.

"And your dad?" questioned the boy, flatly.

This time, Skylar scoffed "He most likely agrees with her," her glare fell down to her can as if it were interesting "He didn't say anything, but he didn't have to. I know my parents' relationship well enough to know my mom has got Dad completely wrapped around her finger."

"Damn…" Micah muttered, leaning into his palm.

* * *

_"I love my parents very much, both of them. However, one thing that has driven us apart is my mother's opinion of my career choice. Ever since I was fifteen, I had always aspired to work as a musician. Of course, everyone expected that of me from a girl my age, but they started to worry the more serious I grew with it over the years. I had also teamed up with Micah when I was fifteen, him being eighteen at the time. Both of us were vocally skilled in our own ways and knew our way around digital music production. We would write songs together, spends months making audios and posting them on Youtube. It wasn't until Micah graduated from college that he got the idea to make music videos. With me still in school, this was difficult. Micah had to take control of our first video due to how long it was taking to produce. The video ended up looking more like "Micah Kwon ft. Skylar Lalit" rather than "E-Claire". I didn't mind; in fact, I endorsed it. As long as our first music video was posted and complete, I was happy. Although, I can't deny that I was more ecstatic that now I'm finished with school and I won't have to make that sacrifice again. Over the years, I had exceeded in my studies considerably. So I ended up graduating from college when I was still nineteen."_

* * *

"Are you up to write more rap verses?" questioned Skylar.

Micah groaned childishly as he spun lazily in his chair.

"C'mon, Micah! I'm finally free to work full time!" argued Skylar.

"Since that's the case, you should be writing your own raps now," countered Micah.

Skylar's features looked more pleading "But your so good at it."

"Mm, flattery will get you nowhere, hon," said Micah as he wagged his finger in a nagging fashion.

Skylar frowned, knowing that was the end of their discussion "Fine," she jumped to her feet and strutted over to a desk in the corner of the room where a neat, clean stack of papers lied beside an array of pencils and pens " _Rule one of being an adult: you gotta do things on your own from now on_."

* * *

Hot tea trickled into the petite ivory cup in a scanty stream. In return, a flush strip of steam rose to the air.

"Would you like sugar or milk with that Mrs. Lalit?" questioned Marilyn.

"Neither," replied the dark-haired woman "Tea is just fine in its natural state."

She then took a bold sip of the scorching liquid, not even the slightest twinge of discomfort crossing her smooth features.

"Have you ever had a daughter, Marilyn?" suddenly questioned the woman.

The red-head flinched, surprised by the question "No, ma'am. I'm afraid I can't even say I'm married," she said.

The dark-haired woman crossed her legs over with a pensive sigh "Well, Marilyn, I recognize that you're still young. So that opportunity is just ahead of you," she then took another sip of tea "But I will tell you now, as an experienced mother of a daughter, you will be complete putty in her hands," she gazed into the swirling copper liquid as she spoke "You will do anything you can to be able to see her successful, to see her standing proudly on top. All of your goals become orientated on achieving your daughter's rise."

Marilyn gave a soft nod with pursed lips, even though the dark-haired woman was more focused on her tea than her maid.

The obnoxious ring of the telephone disrupted the peaceful atmosphere.

The dark-haired woman picked it up without hesitation or rush "Hello?"

" _Lisa? Lisa Lalit?_ " a female voice inquired.

"Yes?"

" _Oh, I've called to tell you that your services have been requested for a photo shoot to model band merchandise._ "

Lisa scoffed "Band merchandise? Why would anyone need help styling band merchandise?" she asked, almost insulted.

"I understand your confusion. It's just that Aron Pearson is modeling for us and he specifically—"

"Aron Pearson…!" the woman suddenly gasped, causing Marilyn to drop some sugar cubes that had previously been cradled in a snow white saucer.

" _Y-Yes, Aron Pearson_ ," stammered the voice on the other end " _He's modeling Stone Heart band merchandise for_ Twist _magazine along with another model, if we can find one…_ " the voice dragged out those last few words in internalized frustration.

Lisa's lips parted to reply, but then they halted and formed into a wry smile "Don't worry, I can cover for you…and the model."

Starting with a gasp, the female voice replied " _R-Really?_ "

"Oh absolutely," said Lisa "I have great connections, you know."

" _Oh thank you, thank you Mrs. Lalit! You truly are the best in the business!_ "

Lisa chuckled "Please, Miss! I only want to help. After all, a fashion industry needs unity."

When Marilyn stood back up after cleaning up her mess, the call had ended "Mrs. Lalit…?"

"Hm?" innocently regarded Lisa "Oh yes, back to our topic," she intertwined her fingers and rested her chin on the bridge it created "As a mother, you'd do anything for your daughter, _anything_."

* * *

A harsh guitar riff accented the youthful female voice that sang its melody through the speakers. It ended with the merciless beats and rattles of the drum sets.

Micah glanced up at the radio absentmindedly with his lips puckered as they balanced his pencil.

" _Alright! That was Stone Hearts' "Mortality", one of their latest hits on their new album "North Haven"…_ "

"Micah! Could you _please_ turn that radio down?" whined Skylar as she entered the living room.

The young man turned in her direction "Why? You don't like this kind of music?"

"No, it's just that I don't think metal and punk rock is exactly the type of music to listen to when you're trying to write," Skylar plopped herself in the couch "We really shouldn't be listening to any music since we're writing lyrics."

"Why not? It inspires creativity," replied Micah with a smirk.

Skylar snorted "It inspires plagiarism."

Regardless, Micah obliged and turned the volume down as well as change the station to a more calm R&B station.

Once he found it, however, the ring of Skylar's cell phone sang out with its own melody.

The young woman dug into her pants pocket and answered he phone without checking who was calling her "Hello?"

" _Oh Skylar! I need you to come home right away._ "

Her mother's urgent voice rattled the woman, but her elated tone confused her. Both emotions were replaced by irritation once the words set in.

"What? Why?" questioned Skylar.

" _I'll tell you when you get here!_ " replied the mother.

Skylar suppressed a groan "Can it wait? I'm kinda busy at the moment."

" _What? Where could you be?_ "

Skylar's being tightened at the question "I'm at the, umm, community center, erm, looking for programs to enter."

" _That's where you've been all day?_ "

The befuddlement in her mother's voice burned Skylar with the indication that her lie wasn't as convincing as she assumed "Yeah, I spent a lot of time here just chatting it up, y'know."

" _Well you're not doing anything right now, are you?_ "

At that, Skylar knew she could not cover for this. She had never once stepped into a community center alone and had no idea what went on inside of those places.

"No…" the young woman admitted, biting back her defeat.

"Well come on home then! And hurry!" urged the woman as if it were obvious.

Skylar sighed "Yes, Mom…"

Micah had been barely listening as Skylar spoke on the phone, primarily focusing on the song lyrics before him in scrawled out in pencil. However, he did pick up on her distasteful mood.

"I gotta get home," groaned Skylar, pushing herself up off of the couch.

"I'll see you later," replied Micah, waving her goodbye as she walked towards the door.

* * *

"What could be taking her so long?" questioned Lisa, her voice a combination of irritated impatience and cheerful excitement.

"Perhaps she took her bike," answered Marilyn.

Lisa spun on her heels "Her bike? How juvenile can she get?" she said in disbelief.

Just then, the door opened and slammed, stealing both women's attention.

In staggered the haggard-looking Skylar, her appearance complimenting the frown on her lips.

"Skylar! There you are!" cheered Lisa as she placed her hands on the daughter's shoulders, which were nearly level with the tall mother's.

Marilyn approached the young woman just a second behind the mother "What happened to you, dearie?"

"I hit an uneven sidewalk block and fell off of my bike," the younger answered, flatly.

"Hm, well you have no use for a bike anyway," said Lisa in a patient, all-knowing tone as she picked an aged leaf out of the short, black hair "You're well old enough to drive. Besides, you've always been much too tall for those things," she smirked pensively at her daughter, then flicked the leaf away "Actually, this look may work for you."

"What?" questioned Skylar.

The mother's grip on her daughter softened into something more loving "Skylar, today I got a call from my agent," she said "She's offered me to style Aron Pearson."

The famous model's name sparked a rather suggestive thought in Skylar's mind and it showed as her features twisted slightly in confusion " _Isn't he, like, an underwear and swimsuit model?_ " she internally questioned " _I could've sworn he was on Playgirl at least a few times._ "

"However, his photo shoot requires a second model…" Lisa smiled knowingly at Skylar.

The daughter's eyes widened before she spastically swatted her mother's hands away "Forget it!" she gasped "There's no way I'm posing in my bra or some skimpy string bikini for a photo shoot!"

The mother simply frowned and attempted to calm the young woman "Honey, no, no, that's not it…" as the red-haired maid blushed furiously at the image Skylar had implanted in her mind.

"The photo shoot is just to advertise this band's T-shirts that I'm supposed to accessorize. Really, it's nothing huge," she said "Aron is just modeling them so they can gain more popularity."

Skylar's chest deflated as a revealing sigh escaped past her clenched teeth " _Oh, so it's somewhat of a fangirl thing; eye candy to get more attention,_ " she thought " _But still_ …"

"Mom, I've already told you that I don't want to model, act, or do commercials, any of that," the young woman said the constantly rehearsed statement.

The mother frowned again "But Skylar, you should be thankful that I have the power to give you that kind of fame," she said "I can make you successful. I can make you a star."

"But I'll wake up every morning to a job I hate," argued Skylar.

Lisa was losing patience "How can you hate being in the limelight, yet you still want to start a band?"

"I don't hate the limelight at all! I just want to have a say in how I'll get there. E-Claire is something that I love and it's something that I'm good at. I've already devoted four years to E-Claire."

"Yes, four years too many."

Skylar gave a defiant pout "It's like you've been saying, Mom. I'm my own adult, now and I can make my own decisions," she said "That also means that you can't simply make me do frivolous things anymore."

With that, she strode her way past her mother and up the stairs.

Lisa made no attempt to stop her.

* * *

A slither of light penetrated the darkness of the bedroom.

"Skylar dear?" the dainty female voice hushed.

The young woman in question lied flush on her back, over the tucked orange blankets with her arm covering her eyes. A lazy grunt from her throat was enough to give the maid permission to enter.

A weight settled by Skylar's right leg as she felt Marilyn's wide hips press on the bed "Skylar, your mother had something to tell you before you left."

The young woman lifted her arm from her eyes. It had been well over an hour after the discussion. She wondered what her mother could have thought of in that time interim.

"She said that you can bring your friend with you to High Tides agency," explained the maid "And after the photo shoot, you can go upstairs to the Bella's office to talk about E-Claire."

Skylar's lips parted slightly in shock. She knew Marilyn was quoting her mother's words directly because no one but Skylar and her mother knew about their story with Bella. Bella was a music agent who has worked with various celebrities. Because of her friendship with Lisa, Skylar has always wanted the two to give E-Claire a chance. She and her mother had had countless arguments over the topic and now Lisa was finally giving in.

"Tell her I'll be up and ready by seven."

* * *

"Well isn't this something." Micah admired his surroundings that were the interior of High Tides agency with a knowing grin "Take it all in, Skylar. Soon, we'll be calling this place our home."

He and the youth in question walked down the grand hallway with Lisa leading the way. Despite never being in such a place, the young man walked casually with his hands in the pockets of his periwinkle pants, which accented his green and blue floral patterned polo shirt. However, Skylar nervously strode beside him in her velvet red jeans and black muscle shirt.

The duo's clothing earned many stares from passerby, especially since they were succeeding the elegant Lisa Lalit and her maid, Marilyn.

An addition was made to the deal in which Skylar also brought along Marilyn to ease her nerves.

Finally, the group approached a woman in a classic business suit. She had shiny blonde hair tied into a wavy ponytail and striking lime green eyes that bounced with excitement upon seeing Lisa.

"Oh, Mrs. Lalit! It's great to see you," she greeted, eagerly extending a hand towards Lisa.

"As to you, Katherine," replied the stylist as she shook the shorter woman's hand.

The blonde known as Katherine directed her attention towards Skylar "And this must be your son."

Micah pursed his lips in an attempt to avoid the chuckle that crept up his throat.

Skylar only flinched in surprise "Actually, I'm-"

"Yes, yes! This is my pride and joy, Skylar!" Lisa suddenly interrupted, cupping the youth's face and squeezing her cheeks lovingly with her middle finger and thumb, rendering the youth speechless "He's very excited to be here."

Micah furrowed his brows in confusion. Marilyn simply looked to the floor.

Katherine nodded "Excellent!" she said "Aron Pearson is waiting for you in his dressing room down the hall. So you three can just step inside this dressing room and get started."

"Thank you," said Lisa, opening the door between her and Katherine "Tell Aron I'll be with him shortly. I just need to get Skylar's outfits ready."

As she said that, she scooted both her daughter and Micah into the dressing room, Marilyn following the two without urging from Lisa.

Once Lisa closed the door behind them, Skylar blurted out "What was that about?!"

The stylist sighed in defeat, then approached the fuming young adult "I signed you up as a male model."

"I see that," Skylar chided "What I wanna know is why."

"They were looking for male models," stated the mother "Let's be frank, honey, you already dress in a pretty masculine fashion. What was I supposed to do?"

"Let them find another model!" answered Skylar "You're a stylist. You don't have to help these industries find models."

"But Skylar, think of the career opportunity ahead of you!" gasped Lisa.

The daughter grunted "You always say that."

Lisa sobered up, frowning sternly "Remember our deal."

Skylar glanced at Marilyn, who wore a guilty expression as Micah stood beside her as clueless as a dear in headlights.

"Fine," said Skylar "I'll do it for E-Claire."

* * *

Skylar sat in the cold, leather chair in nothing but her panties. She held her knees up to her breasts and rubbed her muscular arms "Mom," she whined "I'm freezing."

"Almost done, Skylar."

Marilyn stood in the corner with random clothes hanging over her extended arms like a walking hanger. Micah sat outside in the hallway as a lookout for anyone who dared to barge in, also so that he, himself, wouldn't see the young woman's naked body.

"Finished!" the stylist hissed as she laid her collection of clothes on Marilyn's already occupied arms.

Lisa then made her way over to her daughter, joy buzzing with every move she made "I've got to go help Aron Pearson with his clothes, now. Marilyn will help you put on your binder and clothes."

"Okay," muttered the young woman before her mother sped off. She sighed after she heard the door close behind the stylist.

Wordlessly, Skylar stood up and approached Marilyn, who had laid the appropriate outfits on another couch and was now holding a white binder.

Skylar stood with her back to the maid, who then broke the silence "Honey, I know how you feel about your mother, but please understand that she does this because she loves you," she said as she placed the binder on the woman "She cares so much about you. All she wants to do is see you succeed."

Finally, Skylar spoke "See me succeed?" she glanced at the mirror set in the corner of the room. Her reflection showed her flattened chest, the slight swells of her breasts still visible through the white fabric "Or be the owner of a successful product?"

* * *

"And you are...?"

A lean, tanned young man with dark brown hair and brown eyes raised an eyebrow at Katherine "Neal Tracy," he answered with a slightly offended tone.

Katherine's features only twisted further in confusion.

"From Stone Hearts," he clarified.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't recognize you," apologized Katherine in the most polite and professional manner she could summon.

However, Neal saw through the excuse "It's alright. My name is pretty generic, I know."

Katherine nodded her head in the direction of the hallway "Right this way, then," she said before she lead the youth down the hall "We're getting the photo shoot set up right now. I believe your other band member arrived not too long ago."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, indeed."

It was a rather short trip to the large room where the photo shoot was being held. It felt rather crowded with the bustling people walking this way and that. The only stationary things in the room were the two white backdrops surrounded by cameras and the model who sat in his chair getting his make up done.

"Yo Neal, over here!"

An assertive female voice called over to him.

He looked beyond the movement of the people to find the source of it. Sitting on a padded bench was a pale young woman with sheen black hair tied in a high ponytail with a swooping bang over one of her indigo eyes. She had a narrow face to match her demure curves. She wore a simple outfit of a black tank top and skinny jeans partially concealed by her black leather boots.

"Hey Jean," greeted the young man as he approached her and sat on the padded bench with her.

"Ahh, it's good to be back," sighed the woman.

"Hm?"

Jeanine motioned around her "Remember that short movie scene I did for Action Pact?"

Neal snorted "Remember? How could any of us forget with you whipping it out every five minutes?"

Jeanine chuckled "Well, this is the agency that hired me."

Neal's brown eyes bounced some in surprise "You're kidding me."

Jeanine shook her head "Not at all," she said "It was me and this other kid; some Native American boy, I think."

"Wow, quick to jump to race, aren't we?"

"Shut up. You know I'm just trying to remember what he looks like."

In the distance, Katherine's squeal broke both young adults out of their train of thought.

"He's perfect!" the blonde said, marveling at the wincing young woman sporting a black Stone Hearts T-shirt, black skinny jeans with a silver chain hung around the belt loop, and a black spiked wrist band.

Lisa stood behind Skylar in all of her pride "Thank you," she said.

"Okay, Skylar, all we need to do now is do a little touch up of make up," she said "It's just over this way…"

As the young woman was led over to a make up chair and surrounded by men and women with make up supplies in their hands, Jeanine's indigo eyes widened.

"That's…" she let the word hang in the air.

Neal glanced at his band partner "Did you say something?"

"That's him…!" the young woman gasped "That's the boy I worked with in the movie scene. He's…Skylar."

* * *

Aron adjusted his black leather jacket on his muscular body, his jet black undercut and stubble complimenting the dark shade. Skylar only watched him from her own white backdrop beside his as the cameramen readied themselves.

"Hey kid," Aron addressed the young woman in his smooth Hispanic accent "Is this your first time doing this?"

Skylar tediously fiddled with her shirt tail "Actually, yes..." she said, trying to make her already androgynous voice deeper.

The dark-haired man chuckled "Don't worry," he said "It's all just hype. Just do what comes natural to you and the cameramen will eat it up."

"Oh, o-okay," said Skylar "Thanks."

She would have been nervous from doing a photo shoot when she has never had any experience modeling, but it was currently being overpowered by the fear of her disguise failing.

Suddenly, one of Skylar's cameramen's voices arose "Okay, we're ready!"

Caught off guard, the young woman flinched, then readjusted herself by turning slightly to the left and placing her thumbs on her belt loops and letting her palms rest on her pelvis.

"Marvelous, man, marvelous," a satisfactory round of camera flashes painted Skylar's standing figure.

She then proudly placed her hands behind her head, letting her athletic figure stand out.

"Good, good…" Flash, flash, flash.

Behind the cameras, Katherine beamed "Oh, Mrs. Lalit, your son is a natural!"

"Why thank you," said the stylist "I'll be sure to tell him how much you appreciate him. He'll be glad to hear it."

"Oh yes, I can certainly see a modeling career ahead of him," said Katherine "Such looks and grace would be a shame to waste."

Farther behind in the room, away from the fuss, Micah shook his head "I can't believe everyone is actually buying this," he said "I knew Skylar was a girl the first time I met her. How is anyone believing this?"

Marilyn sighed "It's just the way she was born," she shrugged "Ever since she was a child, she looked and sounded androgynous. She can't help but look absolutely handsome no matter what gender-orientated style of clothes she wears. It only increased as she went through puberty."

Micah snorted "Eh, I'll admit, she can easily pass for a transmasculine person."

Tucked away in their corner, Jeanine and Neal still debated heavily on the current situation.

"Jean, there's no way that guy is the same Skylar you did the movie scene with," said Neal "What are the odds of that even happening?"

"Screw the odds. I know what I'm seeing," chided Jeanine.

"Tch, alright, so what are you gonna do? Go meet him after the photo shoot?" snorted Neal.

"What else do you think?" rebutted Jeanine.

The tanned man's smirk fell "Jean, it's not that serious-"

"You just keep your nose out of my business," interrupted Jeanine, thus, rendering the other to silence.

* * *

"Break time!"

Skylar slumped slightly as she made it to her make up chair, droplets of sweat forming on her forehead.

"Skylar, you're sweating so much!" the mother noticed, rushing to her aid "What's wrong?"

The young woman gazed up at her mother with tired brown eyes "I don't know," she said "I just feel so hot, all of a sudden. My chest hurts…"

"It's probably from the damned binder. Maybe you're overheated from all these layers in this congested room, too," the stylist muttered, placing a gentle hand on the daughter's shoulder "Go on to the dressing room and change out of that thing. There's a sports bra I hid in your bag. You can put that on."

Skylar smiled and staggered out of the photo shoot room.

* * *

Getting to the dressing room wasn't easy. With the depleted energy Skylar had along with the clone-like resemblance of every door, the task took much longer than it should have. Thankfully, the hallways were chilling to the bone with sterile air conditioning, alleviating the light-headedness Skylar had experienced from her heat.

"Huh?" she turned around, hearing a strange shifting noise, but saw nothing.

Eventually, she heard it becoming louder and turned around again to meet with the same empty hallway.

When she continued to walk forward, however, she was met with a friendly "Hey!"

Approaching her from the front was Aron Pearson with a keen grin on his face.

"O-Oh, hello," greeted Skylar just before they met at a modest distance.

"You are…Mrs. Lalit's son, no?" questioned Aron.

"Yes," said Skylar.

"Ah," said Aron, slowly and subtly walking around to Skylar's right, causing her to put her back to the wall to continue facing him without her realizing it "Is that so?"

"Yeah," said the young woman.

The man furrowed his eyebrows "Hm?" he hummed, scanning her figure "You wouldn't happen to be adopted, would you?

"No," said Skylar "I'm half Native American on my father's side."

"Oh, I apologize," chuckled Aron "I only wondered because I was adopted, you know?"

"Oh really? Well, it's alright," replied Skylar with a smile "I get that a lot when I'm just with my mom."

The two chuckled politely, then Aron nodded pensively "Hmm, half _Native American_ , you say?" he said "That explains your divine looks."

A small blush warmed Skylar's cheeks. She spastically wondered if the statement was a simple compliment from one model to another or an inappropriate flirtation from a stranger to a woman. She settled on the former when she remembered she was not a female to anyone in the building's eyes.

However, the idea quickly changed when Aron closed the distance between them, forcing Skylar to press her back flush against the wall to avoid having her body touch the man's "Tell me, _niño pequeño_ ," he said "How old are you?"

Without hesitation, Skylar instinctively pushed the man away and began to run down the hallway.

"Huh? Wait!" Aron extended his arm in an effort to catch the young woman by her shoulder. However, he hadn't accounted for how fast she would run and his fingers landed on her hip, yanking her by the the silver chain on her belt loop and causing her to fall face-forward. Aron had also fallen forward by the force, but was able to catch himself on his hands and knees. After recovering himself, he looked down, ready to apologize, but was stunned by the sight before him.

In his hand was the silver chain still connected to the pants, which had pulled all the way down to Skylar's ankles. Following the trail up Skylar's reddish bronzed legs, Aron set his gunmetal eyes on a pair of lacy red and pink striped panties adorning Skylar's ass.

* * *

**"niño pequeño" is Spanish for "little boy"**


	2. Toffee

"Where are our models?"

Katherine wandered around the stilled room of photographers and make up artists. All had paused in their preparations when neither models returned from their alleged break.

The blonde approached Lisa "Mrs. Lalit, would you like me to go check on Skylar?"

"No, thank you. I'll take care of it," as Katherine turned to tend to another agent, the black-haired woman turned to Micah "Micah, go get Skylar for me, please."

The young man pokerfaced with a nod "Yes ma'am," and left the modeling room.

Micah strolled down the hallway, reversing the pattern of twists and turns that he had gone through in order to get to the modeling room. He was able to route his way to the dressing room quickly and, as a result, walked in on a very strange sight.

Skylar was face down on the rouge carpeted floor with her pants coiled around her ankles. Aron Pearson kneeled behind her on all-fours, staring in bemusement at the woman's rose colored panties.

"I'm about ready to call the police," stated Micah, a mixture of worry and confusion swimming under his features.

Skylar pressed up "Micah…!" she exclaimed in both shock and humiliation.

On the other hand, Aron had paid no mind to the young man's arrival "I'd never suspect this…" Skylar turned to look at the older man "The son of Lisa Lalit…is a closeted cross dresser."

Skylar stammered "No! I mean, it's, umm…"

"Oh for God's sake," Micah muttered, approaching the two "You seriously still think this is a guy?"

The young man approached Skylar, extending a hand.

"Thank y- huh?!" the young woman was caught off-guard, expecting her companion to just be offering her a hand to help her stand up on her feet. However, the young man pulled her up into a kneeling stance and swiftly turned her around so she would be facing Aron.

"What're you—"

"See? Totally flat," Micah deadpanned, motioning towards Skylar's clothed crotch.

Aron's brown eyes widened at the flatness just inches away from his face.

"Well, save for the camel toe," commented Micah, earning a heated "Bastard…" from Skylar.

As soon as the curse left the woman's lips, her black T-shirt was yanked up, revealing her bound breasts.

"As for up here, not so flat," remarked Micah.

Skylar squealed, immediately scrambling to cover her body, having been revealed from the collar bone down.

"Micah! Just what the hell do you think you're doing?"

"I'm getting you out of this ridiculous ordeal. Your mom is insane to sign you up as a male model."

"I know that better than anyone, but I have to go along so we can sponsor E-Claire."

"Is it really worth this?"

"Of course!"

As the two young adults bickered, Aron continued to study the sight before him, that being the body he once believed was male. At some point, he slowly came to his feet, interrupting the two with his calm words "Let me understand something…" he said, then pointed to Skylar "You're actually a girl?"

"Not convinced?" Micah posed, crooking his fingers on the edge of Skylar's binder, to which the female chided "Don't even think about it!" her palms pushed against her bound bust.

"Hmph, that's a shame," said Aron in a genuinely disappointed voice "I didn't sign up to get paired with some _puta_ with a cross dressing fetish. I specifically said I wanted a _male_ model."

Skylar let out an exhausted "Heh, well this is what we've got to work with."

Aron smirked "Not unless I bring it to Mrs. Lalit's attention."

Skylar's face fell into an expression of worry.

"Imagine the state of Mrs. Lalit's career if people knew she failed to appease Aron Pearson's request for a male model," the man said with a sly tone of voice "I can see it now; Lisa Lalit's desperation to please Aron Pearson leads her to force her daughter to cross dress."

Skylar gasped "Oh god…Mom's gonna kill me…!"

"The state of your mom's career just went completely over your head, didn't it?" murmured Micah, shaking his head.

The young woman, not hearing Micah, stepped up to Aron "Please, sir, keep this a secret. I'll do anything you want."

Aron chuckled, looking down at the female who wasn't too shy of his height "Well now, I would gladly accept that offer if you were a man," he said with a wry smirk "But I suppose there _are_ other ways a woman like yourself can help me."

"Anything," repeated Skylar.

"Hm, you sure are liberal with that word," he said "Alright then, _puta_ , for as long as I hold this little secret, you're in my debt for whatever I want."

* * *

"Hey, at least he was gay," said Micah "If he was straight, I would've walked in on a much more tragic sight."

"Ugh, don't remind me…"

The two were in the dressing room, Skylar changing back into her day clothes as the male sat in a closed off section of the room. The photo shoot had ended without a hitch and everyone was preparing to go home and call it a day.

"What? You know I'm right," said Micah "I don't want to imagine what it would have been like if he blackmailed you into being his personal sex slave."

Skylar shook her head. She did know Micah was right and that she was being let off easy, but still "God, how did this even happen?"

"He would have found out you were a woman, anyway," said Micah "You can't deny that the idea of a boy in panties wouldn't have turned him on even more and had him rip them off in a heartbeat."

Skylar tugged on her shirt "Shut it. I could've rode out the lie a little longer anyway if you didn't come in and strip me!" she said "Honestly, sometimes I can't believe you're grey-asexual."

"Believe it, hon."

A knock on the door halted their conversation.

"Marilyn, is that you?" asked Skylar.

"No, it's Jeanine Mackenzie," a familiar voice answered "From Stone Hearts."

Skylar didn't completely recognize the name, but once it was followed by the band name, she instantly adjusted herself in the mirror " _Shit, I don't have my binder on_ ," she then snatched a black, leather jacket and zipped it up "I'm coming," she announced.

The young woman approached the door and opened it. On the other side, stood the rock star, standing boldly before the woman.

"Hi," politely greeted Skylar.

"Hey there," Jeanine replied "Your name's Skylar Lalit, right?"

"Right."

Jeanine smiled slightly "Good, great…" she said, nodding "I know it's been a while, but…do you remember me?"

Unfamiliar with the band, Skylar said "Well, I've heard you on the radio before," hoping that wouldn't deflate the girl's ego.

"No, I mean, before the band was even formed," she said "I'm "Sarah" from our movie scene together."

"Our movie scene…?" Skylar repeated "The only movie scene I've ever done was the one for Action Pact, but…"

Realization flooded her brown eyes as they widened.

* * *

"What do you mean Timothy can't come?!"

The adults on the movie set halted upon hearing the young blonde woman's exclamation. They were standing within a dimly lit parking garage, the cameras and lights set on a specific set of cars, one of which held a pair of conversing actors who had been ignorant to the blonde outside. Said blonde was frowning in distress at the startled man before her.

"I apologize, Katherine, but Mr. and Mrs. Sanders said they no longer want their son in the film," said the man, trying to regain his composure before his shaken superior "They feel it's inappropriate for him to be in."

"What? It's just a short scene!" said the befuddled Katherine.

The man muttered "I don't see why anyone would allow their kid to be in an R-rated movie even for a nanosecond…" but the snark went below everyone's ears.

Katherine shook her head "Ugh, this is a disaster…"

As the blonde strode anxiously in one direction, Lisa walked into the scene, crossing her path and catching wind of Katherine's displeasure "Hm? Is something the matter, Katherine?"

The blonde spun around on her heel, her bespectacled eyes gleaming at the taller woman as though she were her savior "Lisa, Timothy's parents pulled him from the movie."

"The boy who was supposed to play Mark in the car scene?" questioned Lisa with hardly a lick of surprise.

"Yes, and now we don't have a male child actor for it," sighed Katherine with a frustrated shake of her head.

Lost in her uneasiness, the blonde didn't notice the young girl that walked up to Lisa "Mama, can I have something to drink?" the child asked.

Lisa patted her daughter's head as she looked around "Yes dear, there should be a water bottle in my…" she trailed off when her gaze landed on the girl. Her hands ruffled through the short, boyish black hair. She took note of how the reddish-skinned girl was still too young to have developed any curves. Her red T-shirt and blue jeans did her further justice to piece together the image the mother had in her mind.

The mother leaned down to her daughter's level "Skylar, Mama has a special favor for you to do."

The child's nonchalant face didn't falter "Do I get the water if I do it?"

"Of course you do, sweetie!" the mother chuckled "In fact, if you do this favor, we'll stop by McDonald's afterwards."

Skylar's unbiased face lifted into a smile.

* * *

"And…action!"

The two men in the front of the car panted in exhaustion, one leaning back in his passenger seat as the other hunched over the steering wheel.

"How in the hell did they find us?" gasped the younger, bespectacled one.

"Fuck if I know," rasped the older man with stubble painting his chin "They weren't supposed to even be here. It was probably a trap…and we fell straight into it."

The bespectacled man frowned "Dammit," he said "We'll have to relocate. Otherwise, they'll get to McCarthy before we do."

"Mick Carthy? Is that some code name?"

The two men whipped their heads towards the childlike voice with horror in their eyes. That horror only intensified when they caught sight of the two children in the back seats. The girl who had spoken was pale with straight black hair held back by an indigo headband, complimenting her dress of the same color and a white shawl. Beside her was Skylar, clad in a black tuxedo.

"I believe that's is a surname, Sarah," Skylar said, raising a finger towards the girl.

"H-Huh?! Who are you two?!" stammered the bespectacled man, his voice cracking.

"Well, as he said, I'm Sarah," answered the girl in the dress "And he's Mark."

Skylar waved meekly with a satisfied smile.

"What the hell are you two doing here?!" barked the older man, fire in his brown eyes.

"You guys are heading to the Isabelle Museum, right?"

"Cut! Cut!"

An obnoxious bell rang, causing Skylar to cringe and the bespectacled man to roll his eyes.

A hand slapped on the window "Where the hell did you get "Isabelle" from?" growled the blond man with an English accent on the other side "It's the "Melanie Museum"!"

The actor in the passenger seat snorted "Hey, lay off the kid, Michael, you don't have to swear at him."

"Tch, he's already in a movie loaded up the arse with F-bombs, his innocence is far gone," scoffed Michael. The blond director then turned back to the tuxedo-clad girl "We're taking five to study our lines. Keep in mind that it's for your sake."

He walked away from the car and Skylar realized she was holding a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"What a jerk…" muttered the bespectacled actor.

The older man sighed "We should've taken up that offer for The Evil Within…"

As the two blatantly disobeyed their director's order and muttered their sufferings and gossiped about the director, Skylar struggled to memorize her lines, mumbling each sentence under her trembling breath. The ink-haired girl watched her, also ignoring the director's orders.

"Hey," the girl rested a pale hand on Skylar's contrasting bronze hand.

Skylar looked up at the other.

"It was just a mistake," said the girl "Nothing bad."

Skylar's brown eyes went to her lap "I know, but…the director, he was so upset with me," she chewed her lip "I was fine before, but, now I'm more nervous. I mean, I'm afraid to mess up again, to hold everyone back because of me."

"But the best of actors make mistakes all the time," the girl said "What made them the best was making all of those mistakes in the first place."

Skylar fringed her brows "Hm?"

The girl shrugged "Eh, it's just something that my mom says, mainly 'cuz my dad screws up a lot."

Both girls shared a giggle from the second half of the comment.

"Say, what's your name?" asked Skylar.

"Jeanine, Jeanine Mackenzie. You?"

"Skylar Lalit."

The pale girl rose a brow ""Lalit"? I like that name."

For the first time in her young life, Skylar experienced her cheeks flushing pink in heat.

* * *

"And…scene!"

Jeanine fist pumped the air "Yes!"

Skylar sighed in relief, leaning back into the car seat with a serene smile on her lips.

"Good job, Skylar."

The taller child turned towards the ink-haired girl upon hearing her voice.

"You really did great back there."

Skylar smiled warmly at her "I couldn't have done it without your advice."

"My _mom's_ advice," corrected Jeanine with humor dancing in her blue eyes.

Skylar shrugged "Still."

The two actors had long gotten out of the car after the director had called scene, leaving the two girls alone in the car, the outside noise of the movie set muffled beyond the closed doors of the car.

"Jeanine?"

"Yeah?"

"…Can you…keep a secret?"

"Yeah."

"…Uhm…heh," Skylar chuckled nervously "I…I haven't been, like, really honest here."

"What do you mean?"

There was much more hesitation behind Skylar's reply, so much so that Jeanine had to press her with a "Well?"

The young girl's thin lips parted "I-"

Suddenly, the car door swung open, causing the taller girl to jump.

"Skylar, Jeanine! What are you two doing still sitting in here? Your parents are ready to take you home."

Katherine's words startled both the girls and gave Skylar an opening to back away from her jump off of the cliff.

* * *

"Y'know, we should really catch up and hang out some time…I mean, only if you want to," Jeanine quickly added that last part, her cheeks heating up slightly "My schedule gets pretty hectic, with the band and all. So, like, do you wanna exchange numbers and meet up?"

"Of course," said Skylar, pulling her own cell phone from her pocket "That sounds great."

After the two had exchanged cell phone numbers, Skylar said "I'm glad we got this opportunity to meet. I look forward to getting to know you again."

Jeanine smiled a beautiful smirk that Skylar couldn't help but find charming.

"Same to you, Skylar," she said, flicking her bang from her eye with an incline of her head "I'll see you soon."

With that, the pale woman left, Skylar watching her lean figure walk down the hallway. She sighed contently after she had closed the door "Small world, isn't it, Micah?"

"She still thinks your a man, doesn't she?" questioned the male's voice from the other side of the room.

Skylar frowned, her eyes widening.

* * *

Things had been relatively tame since that day. However, Skylar couldn't help but feel a knot of tension twisting around her with no mercy.

After the photo shoot, and the disasters following it, her mother followed her word and allowed her and Micah to speak with Bella.

As expected, Bella discussed their duo and watched the few videos they had uploaded onto their Youtube account. She wasn't stern, but she was unbiased, making it near impossible to gauge her opinion. To hold even more suspicion above the young adults' heads, her final statement was "I need to think about this."

It wasn't bad.

It wasn't good.

It's wasn't enough to please Skylar.

No less than four days after the events, Skylar was sitting on her bed, leaning against the foot of it waiting for a ring of her cell phone to tell her E-Claire had been accepted.

The moment the first buzz reverberated across the table, Skylar's hand snatched it up at lightning speed.

"Hello!" she greeted.

" _Oh, are you that excited to hear from me, puta?_ "

A burning sensation of disappointment sank in the young woman's stomach upon hearing the Hispanic accent on the other line.

"Excuse me, I was expecting someone else," said Skylar with slight irritation in her tone.

" _No need to hide your eagerness_ ," Aron said " _May as well be honest with one another seeing as we'll be in this contract for quite some time._ "

Skylar rolled her eyes upon hearing the statement "What did you call me for?" she seethed.

" _I need you to run a few errands for me,_ " he said airily as if he were preoccupied with something as as he spoke " _Run down to Silver Fox Mall and pick up a few things for me. I'll text you the stores and the items_."

"Sorry, but I don't have the money to buy you anything," Skylar bluntly stated without a hint of apology in her tone.

" _Oh, no need to worry. I'll also text you my address so that you can pick up my credit card,_ " Aron's voice suddenly dropped " _And you know what will happen if you pull anything with my credit card or my address_."

Skylar had to admit that a few mischievous thoughts did cross her mind, but quickly became aware of the authority Aron had over her.

"Right," said Skylar "Just give me a moment to get dressed and I'll be there in a sec."

* * *

The young woman was quick to realize that her promise couldn't be kept. It took much longer than "a sec" to get to Aron Pearson's house, especially on her bicycle. When Skylar had finally approached the pent house, a thin sheen of sweat lined her forehead. She snatched the helmet off of her head, eager to rid herself of the heat radiating from it.

The young adult didn't bother to stop and ogle the monument's beauty. She marched straight up to the door and rang the doorbell.

After a few seconds of waiting, the owner of the home opened the door, his eyes widening upon meeting Skylar's.

"Huh? I thought you decided not to come," he gasped in surprise "I was about ready to call the deal off."

Skylar flinched at the possibility "Just because it took me a while to get here doesn't mean you should assume I wasn't coming!"

Aron's brown eyes shifted to the bicycle in Skylar's hands. His shoulders bounced slightly in a chuckle "Ah, I see now," he said "Your car's in the shop?"

Skylar followed his gaze to the bicycle, then said "Oh, uh, sure," not wanting to admit the truth.

"Well, I'll let it slide," said Aron as he pulled out his wallet from his back pocket and produced a periwinkle card from it "You checked my text message, right?"

"Yeah, yeah," said Skylar as she accepted the card "I'll be back in a sec- err…"

The young woman frowned and settled on saying "I'll be back."

* * *

"I'm amazed that we can actually sit out here in peace," said Neal.

He, Jeanine, and a dark-haired young man of the same age group were sitting in an outdoor table as people walked by, occasionally sparing a glance at the celebrities.

"Yeah, as long as we have these sunglasses and security guards in hiding," snarked Jeanine as she snacked on a bag of potato chips.

The black-haired young man smiled around the blue lollipop in his mouth "That won't stop one of these guys from getting lucky with a rock star."

Neal sighed "Do you have to hook up with someone every single time we go out, Dylan?"

The black-haired man scoffed "It is _not_ every time, Neal. I'm just trying to find that special someone."

"And you find that "special someone" by banging them in a changing room before you even get to know their name?" questioned Neal.

"Hey, hey, hey, you're really stretching the truth, man," said Dylan, waving Neal off "Besides, you know I can't help myself around a sweet piece of man candy."

Jeanine rolled her eyes " _I really don't get the girls who say they want a gay best friend_ ," she thought " _It's really nothing special_."

"Speaking of which…" Dylan bit down on the lollipop as he quirked a brow at a figure walking out of a store across from them "I spy a tasty piece over there."

Jeanine turned her head upon feeling the figure's presence. Her indigo eyes widened instantly "Skylar…?!" she gasped.

The girl turned around upon hearing her name.

"Hm? Is that Skylar?" questioned Neal.

"Wait, you two know that guy?" asked Dylan.

"He modeled our band merchandise for a magazine," explained Neal as Jeanine continued to called the woman over.

Skylar approached the three with her eyes squinted in skepticism "Jeanine?"

The other woman lifted her sunglasses to confirm her identity "Yeah," she then motioned to the other two males "Skylar, these are the bandmates, Neal and Dylan. Guys, this is Skylar, one of the models from the photo shoot."

Dylan extended his hand "Pleased to meet you, Sky," he said as Skylar shook his hand "You don't mind me calling you Sky, do you?"

The woman smiled "Nah. My best friend calls me that all the time," she said as she sat down.

"It's nice to meet you, Skylar," said Neal "It's too bad I didn't get to meet you at the photo shoot."

"Oh, you were there too?" questioned the woman "I only saw Jeanine."

"That's only because I visited you, myself," said the woman "Oh, by the way, Skylar is the actor I worked with in-"

"Action Pact," both males said in sync.

Jeanine snorted "You act like I've beaten you to death with the story."

"That's because you have," said Neal.

Dylan turned his gaze to Skylar "So, you've been an actor before and you moved on to modeling?"

"Ah, no," the woman corrected "Both were a one-time thing. I don't plan on doing anything more."

"Really?" questioned Dylan "You seem perfectly cut out to be a model," his eyes scanned Skylar "You've got a right face."

The corner of the woman's lip twitched awkwardly "Thanks, but acting and modeling aren't for me," she said "To be honest with you, I'm really aiming for a music career."

A delighted smile crossed Jeanine's features "Seriously? You're planning on forming a band?"

"Well, a duo," corrected Skylar.

An impossible hope bubbled in Jeanine's chest at the idea that Skylar's chosen partner would be herself, but she quickly batted it away as a fantasy "Sweet. Who's gonna be your partner?"

"A friend of mine. We call ourselves E-Claire," answered Skylar "We've posted a few songs on Youtube."

"Really?" questioned Neal "What kind of music do you guys play?"

Upon being asked more on the topic of her work, Skylar grew rather bashful "Oh, y'know, pop and R&B, some EDM, too."

All three band members gave their own expressions of confusion.

“Yeah, I know it’s an odd combination, but it works. Trust me.”

"So, you're music group is called eclair?" questioned Neal, running his hand through his short hair.

"Yes," said Skylar "But it's spelled "E", hyphen, and the "Claire" like the woman's name."

Neal then pulled out his cell phone "Pretty unique spelling," he commented

Skylar grinned, happy to see the man actually looking up the duo "Thanks," after a few seconds of watching Neal work around with his phone, she said "Pardon me, I'm going to the restroom."

Once she stood up, Dylan followed suit, "Me too."

Neither Jeanine nor Neal paid much attention to their departure. The two simply continued to watch over Neal's cell phone screen.

"Why is your internet so slow?" the female asked.

"You expect me to have an answer?

Skylar wrapped her fingers around the bathroom door handle, only to have a broad hand push it closed.

"Where're you going, Sky? That's the ladies' room."

Skylar turned to meet face to face with Dylan's smirk.

" _Oh shit_ ," the woman thought " _He thinks I'm a man, too_ ," her brown eyes anxiously shifted between Dylan and the bathroom door " _If I tell him, he's going to run and tell Jeanine. I don't want that. I want to be the one to tell her, myself_."

"O-Oh, my mistake," Skylar began to back away from the bathroom door, but then halted.

" _Wait, I can't use the men's restroom. He'll see that I can't use the urinal,_ " she thought " _Then he'll think I'm trans. That'll just make me look even ore suspicious if he tells Jean_."

Just as the woman turned to look at the male in a worried glance, a hand fell on her shoulder "I know a much cleaner bathroom down this way," Dylan said as he led the woman down the hall.

Skylar mentally cursed her luck, but her irritation and panic shifted into confusion when she noticed the door at the end of the hall held no sign to indicate the sex.

"Y'know, I don't think I should use the bathrooms here," she said "I don't really trust- ah!" She nearly tripped over her own footing when Dylan nudged her into the dimly lit room.

After the young woman caught and supported herself on her knees, she noted her surroundings " _This looks like a…a janitor's closet_."

She suddenly flinched when a slap landed on the seat of her jeans. When she stood erect and turned around to face the source of the impact, Dylan had already casually sauntered to her front.

"Y'know, I meant what I said back there about you being perfect as a model," the dark-haired male said as he stepped in closer to the girl "You're a real pretty boy with a cute face to match," when he took gentle hold of her chin, Skylar took several steps back until she hit the wall, disbelief choking any refusal she had. The young woman could only think to herself " _No way…this is happening again?!_ "

Dylan licked his lips as he traced his hands down Skylar's quaking torso "You've also got a body to die for, but I'm sure you get that a lot, right?" Suddenly, his breath hitched when he closed the distance between his body and Skylar's…and he felt the swells of breasts touching his chest.

Dylan looked straight into Skylar's eyes with his own forest green orbs. He was no longer smirking.

* * *

"Christ, what's taking them so long?" griped Jeanine, shaking her potato chip bag into her awaiting hand for the remaining crumbs.

"Your friend went in the bathroom with Dylan, you should know what they're up to," said Neal.

Something soured in Jeanine, causing her to frown and bite her lip.

Neal turned his eyes to his partner and quivered "Whoa, Dylan's promiscuity gets on my nerves sometimes, too, but you don't have to have that scary look!"

Jeanine relaxed her face, as if she had come out of a trance " _Huh, why did that bother me so much?_ " she questioned to herself.

She then crushed the empty potato chip bag, giving up on the possibility that it had more to offer and got up from the table to throw it away.

Just as she wandered out to the edge of the cluster of tables to where the closest trash can was, she noticed a figure sprint past her.

She blinked once "Skylar…?"

The pale woman watched as the other ran through the mall like an animal pursued by a predator. Slight concern rose in her chest.

"What was that about?"

Once she threw away her bag and walked back to the table, Dylan slouched back into his seat with a distasteful frown.

"Ah, Dylan!" gasped Neal "What happened to your eye?!"

The male had the beginnings of violet discoloring blossoming just below his eye. He simply just replied with an "I don't want to talk about it."


	3. Ladyfingers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed Jeanette's name to Jeanine, just a little edit.
> 
> By the way, I’m typing this on Google Drive because my MAC had difficulties. I know I’ve probably said this a million times on other stories, but not this one. I just want to clarify for the delay.

 

"Skylar? Skylar?"

Lisa called out for her daughter as she roamed the ground level of the house.

"Skylar, dinner's almost ready," she then muttered to herself "What could she be doing? She always hurries to the dining room the minute Marilyn starts cooking."

Suddenly, the front door flew open. Just before Lisa could turn around, the being that had opened the door zoomed past her, leaving it swinging back and forth on the hinge with the night sky leaking in.

The mother calmly sighed through her nose and approached the door to close it. She then followed the direction of the being "Skylar, what do you think you're doing, leaving the front door open at this time of night?"

The young woman stopped in the bathroom doorway saying "Can't talk, Mom. Didn't get to use the bathroom at the mall," swiftly before slamming the door shut.

Lisa crossed her arms at the closed door from which rustling sounds emitted from "That's where you've been? The mall?"

"Yeah," said the flustered voice of the girl on the other side.

Lisa snorted "You've got to start telling me when you're leaving the house, young lady."

Inside the bathroom, Skylar replied with a generic "Uh-huh," as she rapidly texted a message while seated on the toilet.

" _Me: sorry i couldn't get your stuff_ "

The young woman was surprised when she received a reply to the hurried text only mere seconds later.

" _Aron: What happened?_

_Me: Personal business_."

That text caused Aron to take a longer amount of time to reply. Being so anxious to hear from the man, Skylar made no motion to leave the toilet until she had confirmed the conversation.

" _Aron: Well, that's strike one. Don't make this a habit, puta._

_Me: Okay. Sorry_."

Skylar placed her phone on the sink counter, then reached back and flushed the toilet with a groaned "Goddammit."

* * *

"So, you're telling me Skylar is a girl?" Jeanine deadpanned.

She and Dylan were in the back seat of the van, Neal in the front, driving but listening.

"I saw it for myself," Dylan then snorted "Well, more like _felt_ it for myself."

Jeanine scoffed in shock "You groped my friend?!"

Dylan rolled his eyes "Don't make it sound worse than what it was. It was just a little harmless flirting."

"There's no such thing as "harmless flirting" in your case," said Jeanine.

Frustrated, the dark-haired boy said "Whatever! The point is that Skylar is a chick in drag."

"How do I know you're not lying?" questioned Jeanine.

"Because he's telling the truth," interjected the tall male at the driver's seat.

"What?!" spat Jeanine "Neal, don't tell me you're in on this, too."

"No, he's really telling the truth. Skylar is a girl," argued the brunette "In the music video "Lovely Pop", Skylar is wearing a tuxedo without a shirt underneath and…er, you can put two and two together."

"Huh!? When did you see the music video? Your internet was slow," questioned Jeanine.

"I was able to catch it while you were in that last store," explained Neal "Go ahead and pull it up yourself."

Jeanine dipped her hand into her jean pocket and retrieved a black cell phone from it. Dylan scooted closer to her to look at the screen as she tampered with the device. Within no less than a minute, a Youtube video began to play, a brief advertisement preceding the actual video.

The air seemed to grow tense as music leaked through the phone’s speakers. The two young adults awaited Skylar’s appearance as they watched the Candy Land-esque video featuring a young man that they were unfamiliar with, but could only assume was the “Micah Kwon” mentioned in the video description.

Finally, there was a sudden shift in the beat that seemed to change the electropop vibe to something more along the lines of hip-hop as the camera began to zoom in on a couch in the shape of a pair of cherry red lips. One last screenshot of Micah interrupted the zoom-in as if to sign him off before the camera turned face-forward on the figure sitting in the couch-- Skylar.

“See, he’s a--”

Jeanine was cut off when Skylar put down the fashion magazine she was holding and stood up to initiate her rap verse. When she did this, her ensemble of a purple tuxedo jacket, matching pants, and black high heels was fully revealed. Her jacket opened up just enough to show the swells of her breasts.

“B cup, probably,” chortled Neal in a mocking way of finishing Jeanine’s sentence.

Dylan made a disgusted snort “Tch, fuckin’ knew it…”

Meanwhile, Jeanine stared at the screen in awe, her indigo eyes wide and her jaw slightly loose. She sighed an uneasy breath through her nose as the video continued.

* * *

Skylar released a long-winded whistle as she breached the water of her bathtub, relieved by the warmth of the bath water around her body and the sweet smells of perfumed soap that rose from it.

The bathroom door was open to prevent steam from clouding her vision. She was able to do so having no one else in the home.

“ _It’s so rare that I get to have the house all to myself_ ,” she thought, splashing handfuls of water on her charcoal black hair “ _I forgot just how good it can be_.”

Suddenly the doorbell rang.

“Salesman, probably,” Skylar said aloud.

Another ring followed as she sat in the tub.

“Persistent guy.”

Finally, the third ring urged the young woman out of the tub “ _This can’t be a salesman_ ,” she thought “ _It’s probably Mom, Dad and Marilyn coming home early_.”

After patting herself dry with a towel, Skylar put on the red robe hanging from the door and sped towards the door “I’m coming!” she exclaimed despite knowing that no one outside the house would hear her.

The young woman grabbed the door knob and opened the door in one fluid motion before spinning on her heel just as quickly.  
“You guys sure are home early,” she said airily as she walked back in the direction she came from “So how was the interview?”

The door shut closed behind the visitor, but no voice followed afterwards.

“Guys?” Skylar turned around to face her family, but gasped in surprise at who stood there instead “J-Jean…?!”

The ink-haired woman stepped into the home, one hand clutching her other arm, and her knees buckled.

“Hi Skylar…” she greeted in a quiet voice.

“Wh-What are you doing here?!” the other woman practically barked “I know I said we should meet up, but, eh, this is pretty bad timing y’know…”

Jeanine didn’t respond past an “Uhm…” as she staggered towards the center of the front room, taking steps as if she wasn’t sure where else to go in the unfamiliar home.

Skylar followed her curiously “Jean?”

The ponytail of raven hair shifted ever so slightly as she sighed “Sorry, I’m just…tryna find the right words,” she started out “I, uh…I’ve been spending a lot of time wondering if you’ve been... _hiding_ anything from me.”

Skylar’s face twisted in confusion “Hiding something?” she quoted “What would make you say that?”

Jeanine’s indigo gaze suddenly turned dark, shooting daggers at the other woman “I’m pretty sure you know exactly what I’m talking about, Skylar,” she muttered.

Taken aback by the subtle hostility, the other woman stumbled backwards in an attempt to get away from the heated air “Jean, I-I really don’t understand what’s going on here--”

In that moment, the pale woman frowned “Just stop bullshitting already,” she chuckled, darkly “If there’s one thing I can’t stand, it’s a liar.”

“I’m not lying! What the heck are you even talking about?!” exclaimed Skylar.

“You know!” Jeanine quipped “Look, I’ve come across a lot of crazy lies in my career. People are willing to say anything to get close to a celebrity, y’know?” Jeanine then shook her head “But lying about your gender to get closer to someone? Really?”

A conflicted noise came from the back of Skylar’s throat as she stared up at the pale woman.

“I don’t know what kinda chump you take me for,” Jeanine said “But if you know what’s good for you, you’ll drop your robe right now.”

There was a pause.

“Drop my robe…?” Skylar’s tone was blunt with disbelief, causing the confident flame in Jeanine’s eyes to die out.

“Y-Y-Yeah…” the pale woman stuttered “If you were really honest with me, you’d have nothing to hide, right?”

Skylar continued to study the nervous woman before her “Jean, what do you think I am?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Jeanine defended “A guy. Just like you told everyone at that photoshoot…and at Action Pact.”  
Skylar opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Her eyes had blown wide as she stared at Jeanine. Suddenly, the pale woman before her transformed into that little girl from ten years ago.  
“N-No way…” she gasped “You’re—“

“It looks like I couldn’t have stopped by at a worse time.”

At the sound of the third voice, Jeanine pulled herself away from Skylar’s body as the other yanked the robe back onto her figure.

At the mouth of the front room stood Micah, his arm occupied by a satchel.

“What the-- who are you?!” questioned Jeanine.

“Ah, just a friend with some business to attend to,” Micah said, patting his satchel “And apparently, you do too?”

Skylar blushed as Jeanine stubbornly frowned, but then squinted.

"Wait a minute…" she slowly approach Micah, an analytical look in her indigo eyes "I think I know who you are…"

Just as she as a single step in front of the brunette male, she pointed at him "You're that Kwon guy from the music video."

In response, the boy sassily flicked some hair out of his eye "Micah Kwon from E-Claire, yes, that would be me, hon."

Jeanine's eyes popped some in shock "E-Claire," she repeated. She then subtly glanced back at Skylar, then up at Micah "Well, Micah, as a music artist, myself, let me give you some fair advice," she said "Be wary of who you pick as your associates. You never know who's not being _perfectly honest_."

With that, Jeanine strutted past the very confused Micah to take her leave.

“Hold on!” Skylar snapped, standing up from the couch. Before she could make any more angered exclamations, however, Jeanine had already exited out of the house, the door slamming behind her in her haste.

Micah and Skylar exchanged an undetermined glance before Skylar ran a frustrated hand down her face and groaning in exhaustion.

“So…” Micah patted his satchel “About the lyric verses though…”


	4. Butterscotch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Great news, honeybunches! I'll be getting a new MAC [hopefully] soon, meaning I won't have to type on Google Docs anymore.

 

"What did you do…?!"

Jeanine grit her teeth in annoyance when the question was pointed in her direction. Neal’s question wasn’t nagging nor angered, but more laced in fear than anything. Still, the ink-haired woman felt the pressure of a child receiving a scolding.

In the other corner of the band room, Dylan chugged a water bottle ungracefully with one hand while holding his lime green guitar in the other. After finishing, he dove right into the conversation "Yeah, Jean. Spill the deets. Were they a transvestite or what?" he said, crunching the empty water bottle in his hand and tossing it into the nearby waste basket.

"I’m pretty sure that’s a slur…" Neal slipped through his teeth.

With a sigh, Jeanine picked her head up "No, she wasn’t," she said as if Neal hadn’t just spoken "She’s just a tomboy, I guess."

"And how do you know?" Dylan queried, turning his guitar to the side of his body and approaching the woman "It’s not like you saw what was between her legs. You can’t say anything."

Heat prickled Jeanine’s cheeks, painting her pale skin a velvet red "Actually…"

"I knew it!" Neal howled, throwing his hands up into the air out of pure frustration "Ugh, I knew you did something to invade that girl’s privacy…" he groaned, running his hands down his olive skinned face.

Offended, Jeanine looked up at the male "H-Hey! Why’d'ya assume that of me?"

Dylan choked an exclamation before Neal could answer "No way! You saw her naked?!"

Heat prickled Jeanine’s cheeks, painting her pale skin a velvet red “No, but…”

“I knew it!” Neal howled, throwing his hands up into the air out of pure frustration “Ugh, I knew you did something to invade that girl’s privacy…” he groaned, running his hands down his olive skinned face.

Offended, Jeanine looked up at the male “H-Hey! Why’d'ya assume that of me?”

Dylan choked an exclamation before Neal could answer “No way! You saw her naked?!”

“No!” Jeanine’s indigo eyes staying away from the boys before her.

Dylan raised a black brow “So?” he inquired “How do you know they’re a girl?”

Jeanine bit her lip in discomfort “I just…I just know, okay? She told me.”

Dylan shrugged mischievously “She could’a been lying,” he lilted.

"Jean, you have to go apologize to her," the taller of the two males demanded.

"What?!" the woman exclaimed, nearly falling sideways off of her seat.

Neal’s brown eyes stared down at Jeanine "Do you think you can just run in on people and force them to confirm their gender?"

"He’s right," Dylan chimed in, contrasting Neal’s rage with his own monotonous voice "You’d get your ass kicked if this were on Tumblr."

Again, disregarding the added statement, Jeanine answered "I-I know I should apologize, but, I just--I just can’t face her after that!"

"This isn’t the time to be all embarrassed now!" said Neal throwing out his hands before him "You made this mess. Now you have to clean it up."

Suddenly, the door opened, cutting the conversation short.

A young brunette man with a snapback poked his head in "What’s the problem, eh? You’re supposed to be practicing," he scolded in his thick Scottish accent.

With a sigh, Neal and Jeanine both said "Sorry, John," in perfect sync. The man simply rolled his grey eyes and left the room.

* * *

The red-haired maid scooted the mop bucket out of the freshly cleaned kitchen before closing the door to allow the wet floors to dry in peace. As she did this, Lisa walked by "Ah, there you are Marilyn," she said "You wouldn’t happen to have any idea what’s wrong with Skylar this time, would you?"

The maid’s sapphire eyes lowered as she frowned "No, Miss Lisa. I’m afraid I don’t know what’s wrong with the little dearie."

Lisa put her hands on her hips and shifted on her feet to look up at the ceiling where she knew her daughter’s room resided "Hm, she’s been acting pretty strange lately."

Placing a hand on the mother’s shoulder, Marilyn said "Maybe it’s all the stress from job-hunting. Skylar can be a workaholic once she puts her mind into something."

Lisa clicked her tongue "If only she could put that energy into the right things," she muttered.

Upstairs, the young woman in question lied sprawled over her bed, still in pajamas and tucked under the covers in the dark room.

" _I...I just can’t get over what happened yesterday_ …" Skylar lifted her head up from the pillow, squinting as an offensive ray of sunlight that slithered in through the crack in her window blinds " _That’s the last time I’ll ever be careless enough to open the door before checking_."

The scene played over and over again in Skylar’s mind, skipping forward and backward in sequence at random moments. Of course, the most explicit ones replayed the most. She turned on her back to let the heat on her cheeks radiate into the air.

Skylar jolted when her phone vibrated aggressively against the wood of her dresser. She snatched it and pressed her ear to it "...Hello?" there was hesitation in her voice, as she had been expecting this call.

A satisfied " _Ah, hola puta_ …" crept into Skylar’s ear " _You don’t seem as excited to hear from me as you did the last time_."

Skylar bit her lip, agitated, but not wanting to say the wrong thing "Sorry, I’m a little tired," she sighed.

" _No need to apologize. If anything, I should be the one to apologize for not letting you rest_..."

Skylar’s eyebrows raised, despite knowing that no one was there to see the expression on her face " _Was that a hint of kindness I just heard?_ " she thought to herself.

" _But you are indebted to me_ ," Aron finished his thought, crushing any tiny slither of hope Skylar possibly had left " _You still have my credit card and shopping list, right?_ "

"Yeah," said Skylar "You want me to go to the mall and try again?"

" _Yes_ ," Aron’s voice then took on a dark tone " _But this time, don’t fuck it up_."

The change in tone caused a sticky lump to form in Skylar’s throat. She was reminded of the authority and power this man held above her head. She knew that the man was capable of carrying out little errands on his own and an ordinary woman like herself was no Superman to him. She was well aware that if he didn’t see her assistance needed, he could cut her off and take her mother’s career in exchange.

Skylar could hear the man chuckle on the other side at her silent fear.

" _Good luck_ ," he said.

* * *

"Is there a reason you felt the need to bring me with you?"

Neal and Jeanine stood on the tiny cement block of the front porch, uncomfortably close to one another as they waited for someone to answer the ring of the doorbell.

"Come on, Neal, you know you’re my righthand man," said Jeanine with hints of a generous smile on her lips "You’re the best support I’ve got."

The taller man rolled his brown eyes "Buttering me up isn’t going to win me over."

"But you’re here, aren’t ya?" chuckled Jeanine.

Neal scoffed, running his fingers through his short hair in defeat.

"Besides, I can’t bring Dylan with me," said Jeanine "The guy would be gone the minute he sees a man in tight pants."

Neal shook his head "He really sets a bad example for gays…" he muttered.

Just then, the door opened. At the door frame stood the family’s redheaded maid, Marilyn. Her sapphire eyes widened in surprise as her mouth hung agape in an incomplete greeting "P-Pardon me, but aren’t from two from…?"

"The photoshoot?" Neal questioned. He didn’t want to sound conceited by assuming the woman was a fan of his band, so he instead alluded to the photoshoot he had seen her in.

"Yes," said Marilyn "Stone Hearts, that’s it!"

Jeanine modestly chuckled, rubbing the back of her neck "Well, that would be us."

Neal cleared his throat "We’re sorry to disturb you ma’am, but we actually wanted to see Skylar," he explained.

Being brought back down to reality, Jeanine added "Yeah, she hasn’t answered her phone, so we decided to stop by."

Marilyn only seemed to be more surprised and starstruck by the declaration "Oh! You’ve befriended Miss Skylar?" Her eyes beamed as if the president had just shaken her hand.

Neal and Jeanine couldn’t help but feel but bit overwhelmed by the sense of flattery they were receiving from the woman.

"Yeah, a few years ago, I--" the ink-haired woman stopped when she felt an elbow in her ribs. When she looked up, Neal was glaring at her with his narrow gaze. " _We don’t want to be here all day while you brag about your movie role in Action Pact_ ," his eyes scolded. She had known the man well enough to be able to decode his silent stares.

"We got to know her at the photoshoot," Jeanine said instead "We planned to visit her today."

"You did?" Marilyn chewed her lip as if she were afraid to deliver any bad news to the two youths "Well, I’m sorry but Skylar isn't here."

"She's not?" questioned Jeanine "Where is she?"

"The Crystal Mall," answered Marilyn "I’m sure you two can meet up with her. She only left just minutes ago."

"She went back to the Crystal Mall?" Jeanine was more so asking Neal in disbelief than she was asking Marilyn.

"Would you two like a ride there? I know it’s a long way," offered the redhead.

Jeanine smiled. Whether it was a result of their fame or a stroke of luck, she was honestly grateful for this woman’s kindness "No thanks, Ms.…"

"Ms. Paige," answered the redhead "Marilyn Paige."

Jeanine decided to still give her the better respect "Ms. Paige, no thanks. You’ve helped enough. Plus, we already have ride." As she jerked her thumb behind her, Marilyn peaked over the younger woman’s shoulder to glance at the black truck on the curb.

"Oh, so you do!" she chirped "Good luck finding Skylar, dearies. And feel free to come visit anytime!"

As the two began to leave, Neal signed off with a final "Thanks again, Ms. Paige," and a friendly wave.

Marilyn waved back with a kind smile and closed the door. She then gave herself a content sigh "I’m so happy for Miss Skylar," she beamed.

* * *

Skylar seated herself on the park bench, sweat dripping from her forehead as she slumped forward. Her red backpack sat perched on her back, filled with the items Aron had asked her to buy from the mall. Her bicycle leaned against the bench with her helmet hanging off of the handle.

The young woman brushed her tongue over her drying lips and lifted her head. Her eyes scoped the land for the water fountain she had often seen here. Once she found it, she reluctantly stood up from the bench, her strained muscles giving her the sensation of sandbags weighing her down. That didn’t stop her from clumsily making her way over to the water fountain and latching her lips onto the stream of water.

Skylar leaned over the water fountain until she began to feel light-headed, only standing straight up again to catch her breath in heavy pants. She was sure a few people had spared her a glance or two at her somewhat dramatic behavior " _But they don’t know what I’ve been through today_ ," she thought bitterly.

The young woman swiped away the sweat from her brow and the dripping water from her chin " _I wouldn’t be in this shit if I hadn’t done that photoshoot_ ," the memory of that entire day ran through Skylar’s mind. Every single minor detail now seemed irritating and vile, especially the ones involving her mother " _If she wouldn’t try so damn hard to change me, none of this would have happened. She doesn’t even know I’m saving her career by working for this slimy bastard_."

She sighed, looking out to the exit gate of the park that lead to the street she was supposed to go down next " _But hey, she's doing this because she "loves me", right?_ "

* * *

Neal sat in the shadowed area of the venue, just barely seen by other socializing passerby. He nervously tapped his sunglasses as he pretended to be intrigued by the magazine in his hands, his concealed eyes secretly scoping the area around him.

Just as he directed his attention down to the article before him in a meager attempt to satiate his boredom, the chair beside him screeched across the concrete.

Immediately, Neal asked "Any luck?" already knowing who it was.

Jeanine groaned as she seated herself in her chair "No. We’ve looked all over the place. She’s probably already gone back home at this point."

Neal shook his head in frustration "And she’s still not answering her phone?"

"No," Jeanine echoed.

The taller man sighed and looked at his partner "You know, maybe this is a sign," he said "If it’s that hard to track down Skylar, maybe it’s not worth the apology. Maybe we should just leave Skylar alone and let ourselves forget about this."

"Skylar? Are you looking for Skylar Lalit?"

The female voice laced in an Indian accent reached the ears of the two bandmates and instantly snagged at their attention.

Looking up, they saw a youthful Indian woman approaching them. Her black hair fell in soft waves on her shoulders, only parted by a pair of silver hoop earrings. She sported a modest ensemble of a red polo and form-fitting black slacks. Both assumed from the formal attire that she was an employee of some sort.

"Yeah," answered Jeanine "Do you know her?"

"But of course!" keened the lively woman "She’s a regular customer at my music store."

Now eager, Jeanine asked "Did she stop by?" looking as though she would leap from the chair.

"Oh, not today. She had a lot of errands to run," said the woman "When I asked her what it was for, she said she had to make a little delivery to someone in Kingsley Estate."

Neal furrowed his brow in skepticism "Kingsley?" he turned to Jeanine "Isn’t that where Aron Pearson lives?"

The woman chuckled "It would sure be a stroke of luck if she ran into him. I can just imagine how starstruck she would be."

Jeanine and Neal exchanged a brief look. Although they were unaware of the true nature behind Aron and Skylar’s relationship, they did know that the two were well affiliated with one another.

Ejecting herself from the chair, Jeanine said "We’d love to stay and chat, but we’ve really gotta catch up with Skylar. Thanks for the help!"

The ink-haired youth was already hurrying away as the Indian woman gave a kind "No problem. No problem at all!"

Although the woman seemed to take no offense to Jeanine’s hurry, Neal nervously chuckled at the scene and told the woman "Ah, you’ll have to excuse her behavior. She’s been pretty stressed out lately--"

"Neal, hurry! You have the keys!"

The woman laughed and patted the man on the back "Well, I’ll leave you two to that, then."

* * *

Skylar trudged on her bicycle through the upscale neighborhood. The burn in her thighs caused her immeasurable pain. No matter how slow she pedalled, an intense surge of agony coursed through her veins like electricity. Knowing that she’d have to get home the same exact way was enough to push a layer of tears to the brim of her eyes. She immediately wiped them away out of pure pride.

As she looked up at the approaching house, a desperate portion of her hoped that she could coax Aron into letting her rest on his couch. " _Famous model or not, it’s the least he owes me for running me like a slavedriver_ ," she thought.

The young woman decided to direct her focus on the house in front of her from then on and nothing elese. It was so tastefully close that she felt victory already begin to wash over her. Her mind trailed away from the pain and onto her accomplished goal.

Finally, she set foot on the porch and parked her bicycle " _I did it_ ," she thought with a breath of relief. Even though pain shot up through her legs as she bounded the concrete stairs, she still thought to herself " _I got the job done and that’s all that matters_."

Both of her red sneakered feet sat comfortably on the welcoming doormat. A single digit reached up to ring the doorbell. Skylar closed her eyes and smiled in relief as the sound of footsteps rumbled within the house. Finally, the ordeal was over.

The door creaked open and there stood Aron "Ah, hola--"

"Skylar!!"

At the sound of her name, the young woman twisted around to look over her shoulder, but was instantly surprised to see a familiar pale, ink-haired woman bounding up to her from the bottom of the concrete stairs.

"J-Jean?"

As the young woman stepped in front of Skylar, Neal called out from the curb "Jean?! What the hell?!"

Skylar tossed her glance at the olive-skinned friend, staring at Jean through the opened passenger door. Skylar concluded that once the young man had parked the car, Jean wasted no time hopping out of the passenger seat and running to her side.

"Skylar…!" the woman shuddered, placing her hands on Skylar’s shoulders as if she would lose her right then and there "I’m sorry. I am really, truly sorry."

A faint "huh?" brushed past Skylar’s lips as she looked at the guilt-ridden woman.

"Barging into your house and...doing that...was wrong of me," Jeanine continued "Listen, I didn't have any right to invade your privacy like that and accuse you of lying to me. Y-You’ve done nothing wrong."

"Jean, Jean, calm down. It’s okay," Skylar cooed as the woman’s voice began to falter "I forgive you." Skylar couldn’t help but be shocked. Sure, the incident had shaken her quite a bit, but she was willing to brush it off as an awkward and embarrassing moment. But her stood Jeanine, trembling in fear that Skylar would resent her and refuse to accept her apology.

Jeanine’s indigo eyes studied Skylar carefully, like a child who had just gotten off the hook easily from her parents and wondered what the real motive was. "You...you really forgive me?"

"Of course, Jean," said Skylar "I should have told you the truth right away."

Jeanine shook her head, her bang swaying side to side "It’s not _your_ fault, Skylar. It's mine," she said "I really want to make this up to you."

A new layer of shock washed over Skylar. She had always seen Jeanine as a confident and unapologetic woman. She would never expect to see her in such a vulnerable state. It almost made her feel sorry for the woman "Jean, no, it’s really okay. You don’t have to do that."

"But I want to," insisted Jeanine "Just please, anything you want me to do, I’ll do it."

Skylar blinked, utterly taken aback by the kindness. Sure, she felt like she should have expected an apology from Jeanine, but not something this extensive.

Suddenly, Aron cleared his throat "I’d hate to interrupt such a tender moment, but perhaps you two could continue this _after_ I’ve gotten my things."

Skylar could have outright laughed at the dirty look Jeanine had thrown him, but instead, she took off her backpack and said "Well, you have a lot of things, so I think it’s best that I come inside and set them down somewhere."

Aron gave a single nod and stepped aside to let the young woman in. As he watched Skylar unpack the items on a coffee table, Jeanine studied the scene.

" _Are they friends now? Why else would she be doing this for him?_ " she wondered " _He doesn’t seem like any friend Skylar would deal with_."

Skylar walked out of the house and Aron closed the door with a brief "Gracias," and nothing more.

"I, uh, see you’ve made a friend," noted Jeanine.

Skylar shrugged "Yeah."

The two began to step down the stairs in awkward silence, unsure of how to pick the topic back up again after Aron had so rudely knocked it out of their hands.

The tension was broken when Skylar stumbled on the last step and fell on her hands and knees.

"Skylar!" Jeanine rushed to her side "Are you okay?"

The brown-skinned woman groaned, her eyes screwed shut in pain "Agh, I think I pulled a muscle…" she groaned.

"What?" questioned Jeanine.

Skylar nodded her head at her bicycle, still parked against the house "I rode all across town to get here," she said.

Jeanine glanced at the bicycle. She couldn’t fathom pedalling the distance she and Neal had driven.

Jeanine looped an arm over Skylar’s figure "Ah, thank yo--ah!" Skylar gasped as Jeanine lifted her off of the ground, easily holding her bridal style "J-Jean…?!"

"Neal and I will drive you home," Jeanine said nonchalantly as she carried the young woman towards the car "I think that’s one way for me to make things up to you."

Skylar couldn’t help the blush that rushed to her face. Somehow, she was able to mutter a "Th-Thank you…"

Just as Jeanine reached the car, she blinked and hesitated. It seemed as if the world around her had flickered. She quickly dismissed the silly notion and called out "Yo Neal! Open up the back door!"

* * *

"Ooh, what’s this?"

Flash.

"Jeanine Mackenzie of Stone Hearts seen carrying her boyfriend into the car?"

Flash.

"Very interesting…"


	5. Praline

"Bam!"

A handful of fresh photographs exploded onto the woman's desk. They messily slid over one another and threatened to fall into the woman's lap.

"Whad'ya think of that, boss?" the exuberant man asked, proudly leaning over the desk "The face of Stone Hearts carrying her new boyfriend to the car. I know, I know, scandalous, right? Impressive, even? Dare I say that you're considering me the best paparazzo you ever had the privilege of hiring?"

In contrast to the loud man's energetic mannerisms, the woman at the desk simply observed the photos in silence. She carefully moved the pictures around with the blunt end of her pen to study them as the man spoke. She only made a sound after the last sentence she heard, giving a short chuckle.

"Well, it certainly is impressive," she said "You've captured pictures of Jeanine's boyfriend before anyone else has even found out."

The man grinned widely. However, the ego washed away from his face once the boss said "At least, let's  _hope_  you're the first to find out."

She caught one photo under the tab of her pen and extended it to the confused paparazzo "Hurry," she said "Make sure these get on every magazine cover in Arizona."

* * *

"Uhm, actually, can we  _not_  stop by my house?" Skylar requested.

The three had been driving in comfortable silence for only a few minutes. At this question, Neal raised a brow into the rear view mirror.

"No?" he asked "Then where?"

"I'll give you the address," said Skylar "4223 Hampton Avenue."

Equally confused, Jeanine asked "Where's that?"

"Micah's house," clarified Skylar "I have to go there and help him work on our song. I told him I'd be there."

"You don't wanna go home and rest after all of that?" questioned Jeanine "You can always postpone."

"Nah, Micah's house is my home-away-from-home. He's got great food and a comfy couch for me to recover," said Skylar, with a mild smile "Besides, it's not like I have to be on my feet in order to write a song."

Behind Skylar's smile, she mentally rolled her eyes as she thought " _And after all the hell I'd been put through, I'm not exactly in the mood to see my mother so soon._ "

"Are you sure?" Jeanine insisted.

"Yes," said Skylar.

After a pause, Jeanine stuttered "S-Skylar, I know things are a little weird after what happened the other day, but…uh," her cheeks burned red as she averted her eyes "Would you mind if I…never mind."

"Wait, what is it?" pressed Skylar.

Jeanine sighed a little "I was…gonna ask if I could come over and see how you guys make your music, but, well, after what I did…"

Skylar's expression was unreadable to Jeanine, making the pale woman feel even more insecure about the words she chose.

"Jean, I already said I forgive you," said the Native American "Of course you can come over."

The other woman's indigo eyes glinted with surprise, before finally shining in gratitude "I…thank you, Skylar."

* * *

Skylar smiled as the house came into view. Jeanine opened the car door and allowed the dim setting sun's colorful rays to paint the black interior of the car a diluted orange.

"Thanks again, Neal," said Skylar as Jeanine hopped out.

"No problem," the male said "You two have fun."

Just as Skylar carefully stepped out of the car, Jeanine glanced inside and said "Wait! Why don't you come with us?"

Neal looked beyond Skylar and back at his bandmate, perplexed "Me?"

"Duh, you!" Jeanine said with a roll of her eyes "Come on, it'll be fun." With Skylar now completely out of the car, Jeanine was free to extend her arm in a beckoning motion.

Neal, however, seemed a little hesitant "Why would I come with you? I mean, this is kinda your thing."

Jeanine leaned on the door frame "What? So you're just gonna sit in the car for hours?"

Neal opened his mouth to respond, but one look at Jeanine's condescending gaze dashed any confidence he had in his reasoning. He sighed "Alright, I'm coming," as he unbuckled his seatbelt.

The pale woman didn't even wait for him to come around before she closed the car door and caught up with Skylar, who had already been waiting patiently at Micah's patio. The brown-skinned female had already rung the doorbell and was simply waiting for the male to answer.

Already, the muffled sounds of cascading steps and an expressive voice sounded behind the door "...called you like a thousand times. Where were you anyway?" Micah finished his question on a very perplexed note when his eyes roamed over to Jeanine and Neal. He then looked back at Skylar.

"To make a long story short, I wanted to invite a few friends over," said the woman with a calm smile.

Neal put his hands up "We understand if you don't want us over, though. I mean, this is pretty impromptu and all."

Micah looked between the two for a moment and then shrugged "A friend of Skylar's is a friend of mine," he stepped to the side to let the three adults walk in "Come on in. Don't be shy."

The youths obliged and Micah closed the door behind them.

"So, Skylar says you two are working on a song," said Jeanine, checking out the bright decorations of the house as she casually walked into the guest room.

"That's right," said Micah "But I'm afraid if Skylar doesn't get her fatass out of my kitchen, we might not make any progress."

The hospitable tone in which the Asian had said the statement pulled mixed reactions from the two guests. Neal flinched as his cheeks reddened from second-hand embarrassment. Jeanine's hand flew up to her mouth to hold in a chuckle.

Skylar, who had made a beeline for the kitchen while everyone was congregating towards the guest room, strode out of the kitchen and into the guest room with a bag of Cheetos in her hands.

"Rude," was her only remark.

* * *

After discussing the day's events involving Skylar's errand run for Aron and Jeanine's search for the woman in question, the ice was officially broken and the four adults had gotten comfortable around one another. Still, Neal had his apprehensions.

"Hey, we understand if you don't want us to stick around while you're trying to focus on your song," the tall male said.

"But we came here to see how they do it," insisted Jeanine, to whom Neal gave a tired expression.

"Oh,  _that's_  what you're here for?" questioned Micah "Well why didn't you say so? I'd love to show you that!" He sat down in his own chair and pulled up a matching green one, patting the seat.

Skylar then said "Hey, you just took my seat! Where am I going to sit now?"

Micah picked up a pen and motioned outside the door "Honey, there's more places to work than just the office. Why don't you work in the guest bedroom since you love sleeping there so much?"

Skylar sighed through her nose, but swiped her papers from her work station, regardless "C'mon, Jean," she said, exiting the room.

The pale woman followed, leaving Neal alone with Micah. Having no one else to sit in the chair being offered, the taller brunette seated himself. He awkwardly chuckled "Hey, this is really nice of you, y'know, letting strangers see your work like this."

"Well you're not total strangers," said Micah "I was there during Skylar's photo shoot."

"You were?" Neal's face fell a little in anxiety "So, uh, does that mean you know about…"

After hearing the pause, Micah casually asked "About what?"

Neal shook his head "Never mind."

* * *

Skylar sat down in the blue beanbag chair with her papers in hand, giving a soft sigh "I actually prefer this to the stiff chair in the office," she said.

Jeanine seated herself on the bed across from her "Yeah," she agreed, as she looked around "I don't blame you for wanting to relax in here often," As she said that, a sour thought laid in her mind. Subtle traces of disappointment scanned her face "You and Micah must be pretty close."

"Yeah, I've known him since I was a freshman in high school," said Skylar "That was also the same year we formed E-Claire."

"Really…" Jeanine's voice lacked a questioning tone, despite the forced smile on her face.

"And it was perfect," continued Skylar "I needed a more techno-pop sound. He needed a more hip-hop vibe. And together, we were a perfect match."

Jeanine nodded awkwardly, muttering a faint "That's great."

Skylar, being too enthusiastic about the work in her hands, saw none of this "Okay, so usually Micah and I have split jobs. He writes his melody verses. I write my rap verses. And we both collaborate on the instrumental. Like I said before, Micah was a techno-pop singer and I'm a hip-hop artist. So together, we have sort of a R&B-ish EDM thing going on."

"Oh…" that was the only response Jeanine could think of as she didn't quite understand how the two genres merged.

" _EDM and R &B together? How does that even sound?_" she then thought back to when she watched the music video Lovely Pop " _I wasn't really paying attention to the music when I saw the video. I guess it didn't sound too bad_."

"Since Micah and I worked on the instrumental yesterday, we're taking a break to write our lyrics today," said Skylar.

"Hmm?" said Jeanine "You don't write the lyrics before making the instrumental?"

"No," said Skylar "We alternate days so we're working on them at the same time. That way, we can be consistent with the beat and rhythm."

Jeanine inclined her head, now more curious about Skylar's method of songwriting than her previous worries "Huh, so what've you got so far?"

Skylar beckoned the other female over "Come on and see," she said.

Jeanine stood up and walked over to Skylar's side. As the pale female leaned over Skylar's shoulder, the scent of her perfume wafted into Skylar's nostrils. The Native American was slightly caught off-guard but the sweet, yet strong aroma. Her heart skipped a beat as she paused and subtly glanced at Jeanine's profile " _Seeing her up close_ …" Skylar thought " _She really is beautiful._ "

Skylar hadn't realized that she had paused in her speech until Jeanine looked at her "It looks like you're almost done," the pale woman remarked with an impressed glint in her indigo eyes.

Skylar snapped out of her stupor and looked back at the papers in her hands "Oh no, I'm only, like, halfway done."

Jeanine gave Skylar another befuddled look "Your verse is  _that_  long?"

"Well, it looks long on paper, but when I actually rap this, it's a lot shorter," explained Skylar.

Confusion still swam in the pale woman's eyes, leaving an awkward silence to fill the room. Skylar cleared her throat and straightened out her papers "Maybe if I, uhm, show you, it'll be more clear…"

* * *

"Jean," Neal's voice accompanied by the sound of two knocks on the door frame caught both females' attentions.

When Jeanine looked up, Neal raised his hand, holding up a cell phone "It's John," he said.

Jeanine clicked her tongue in distaste, unhappy with having to leave Skylar "I'll be quick," she told the Native American.

Skylar yawned in reply and stretched "Sure thing," she said.

Jeanine reluctantly walked up to Neal and took the phone wordlessly. Neal didn't even have to look at the other's face to know that she wasn't happy about being pulled away.

Jeanine only walked a few feet away from the doorway when she muttered into the phone "John, I'm pretty busy right now. Let's talk about this late-"

" _Just what the hell do you think you're doing?! How could you be so reckless as to let the paparazzi catch you like this?! Do you know how hard I've worked to keep your reputation up and now you're just destroying it like it doesn't matter_ …"

The ink-haired woman held the phone away from her ear, wincing a bit in pain as her ear drum stung. She knew her manager was a pretty grouchy man, but this was ridiculous. She tried speaking again, but the man continued to rage over her. " _What's the point in calling me if you're not even gonna let me fucking speak?_ " she thought. She waited for an opening for a few more minutes as her hope evaporated into nothingness and was replaced with the steam of impatience. Without a second thought, Jeanine ended the call and pocketed the phone.

She walked back to the room, thankful that Neal was no longer standing at the doorway. " _No use giving him his phone back knowing John's gonna blow it up_ ," she thought.

Jeanine returned back to the room, hoping to hear more about Skylar's brainstorming, but frowned when she came walked in to see the brown-skinned woman fast asleep on the bed.

Jeanine sighed through her nose. She knew Skylar had been growing tired due to the day's events, but she thought she would have at least gotten some time of warning before this. She further damned John for taking her last few moments with Skylar away.

With a defeated shrug, the pale woman tiptoed quietly over to the bedside and took the papers and pencil out of Skylar's hands. She then carefully tucked the woman under the blankets. Jeanine was surprised to see that the Native American had not stirred or woken up. " _She must've been really tired_."

She glanced at the woman one last time, watching the gentle rise and fall of her chest as quiet whiffs of air slipped past her lips with every breath. Jeanine's mind went back to a romance series she had watched where the person took the opportunity to kiss their crush while they were sleeping.

The ink-haired woman immediately batted the thought away with a disgusted look and turned on her heel " _Sorry Skylar, but somnophilia's not my thing_."

* * *

Skylar lazily opened her eyes in a slow blink. When all she saw was darkness, the young woman attempted to open her eyes again and again. However, the darkness stayed, no matter how many times she blinked.

Confused, the sleepy Native American rolled over and sat up. After a few minutes of waking out of her haze, Skylar finally understood that she had fallen asleep in Micah's guest bedroom. After a few more minutes of clearing up her foggy mind, Skylar had also remembered just  _why_  she was in Micah's house in the first place.

A smile crept up her face.

Skylar swung her legs over the bed and stood up. She winced a bit as her leg ached. Although she could walk, she knew she couldn't be too aggressive with it.

Blindly walking towards the door, she reached out until she found the doorknob and opened the door, spilling golden light into the darkest corners of the room. She squinted her eyes a bit, but proceeded, nonetheless.

As the brown-skinned female ventured through the house, she was happy to hear that her company had not left. When she came to the kitchen, she could only see Neal and Micah at the table, talking over a plate of chips and salsa.

"Hey, sleepyhead," greeted Micah, who could already hear her creaking footsteps down the wooden stairs before she arrived.

"Hi guys," Skylar said as she approached the two "Where's Jean?" she asked as she idly reached for the bag of chips.

Without missing a beat, Micah swiped the bag away as he answered "In the living room."

Skylar's copper eyes lit up "Ooh, perfect!" The young woman pranced down the stairs and sauntered her way to the living room.

Neal's eyes followed her curiously "She seems pretty happy."

"I'm just surprised it's not because of food," said Micah, dipping another chip into the salsa.

The taller male only looked more confused.

Inside the living room, Jeanine lounged on the couch with her phone in hand, the timeline of Twitter reflecting off of her glossy eyes. She paused and tapped the Tweet button.

[ _ **Jean_MCKNZ**_ _: got to know someone well today. glad i took this opportunity to step out of my comfort zone_.]

Tweet.

Afterwards, the ink-haired woman put her phone away and found a comfortable position on the couch, sinking into it with a satisfied sigh.

Ironically, Skylar swam into the room the very moment the air had settled "Sorry I fell asleep on you, Jean," she said as she entered, earning a jolt from the other woman.

"Ah! Christ, you scared me," Jeanine gasped.

"My bad!" Skylar said, her dim mood not fading away as she walked over to the big screen TV.

Jeanine looked curiously as the Native American woman turned on the television and began to alternate between different remotes in a specific ritual. Even though it was a pretty obvious question, the pale woman asked "What're you doing?"

"Changing to Music Choice: R&B and Hip-Hop," said Skylar "At this time of night, I always listen to this music channel."

Jeanine sat up "So you're gonna listen to some music to help think of more lyrics?"

"No, this channel just plays the best music at this time," says Skylar "It's when DJ Ace makes his remixes and mashups."

As she was talking, the bass of a song played subtly behind her words. Looking on the screen, Jeanine could see one box with a youthful black man sporting sunglasses. Beside that box was a smaller caption advertising one of the cable company's many features. Filling up the very bottom of the screen was a black box with the credits: DJ Ace/ "Post to Be" Galaxy remix.

She listened to the music. Immediately, the ink-haired woman knew it didn't fit her taste, having heard the original version on the radio once before.

Jeanine noticed movement from the corner of her eye and looked over. She was surprised to find Skylar dancing. The brown-skinned woman's body moved in precise, purposeful jerks to the beat. She looked as if she were performing a rehearsed dance that was solely made around the song. Her eyes were closed in carefree bliss and her lips were slightly parted the reveal her front teeth in a pleased smile.

"Oooh, that's how it's post to be," she hummed "That's how it's post to be…"

Her eyes opened and she caught sight of Jeanine watching her. Skylar blushed a little and nervously laughed. Jeanine laughed with equal awkwardness "Don't worry," she said, not wanting to look as though she were judging Skylar "You're a really great dancer."

The Native American laughed a second time, this time more appreciative. "I'm sure you have better moves," she said.

Jeanine was caught off-guard and hesitated, flashing Skylar a sarcastic " _Are you serious?_ " look in her eyes.

"Come on," said the Native American "I'm sure you know how to stun the crowd with more than just your singing skills."

Flattery ignited in Jeanine's body, which soon fueled her pride.

When Jeanine danced, it was the parallel to Skylar's moves. The ink-haired woman's body rolled in an almost sensual manner, fitting more with the melody of the song than the actual beat. What Skylar noticed the most was the way her hips moved. She was virtually hypnotized by the way Jeanine's snug skinny jeans held onto the fluid movements of her hips. Every so often, her pants would dip a little too low and a flash of Jeanine's smooth skin with poke out from her shirt tail.

Out of compulsion, Skylar reached out and took a hold of Jeanine's wrist. Still moving, Jeanine ended up stopping right against Skylar's body. The two young women glanced at each other in awkwardness. Realizing what she had done, Skylar reached out to take Jeanine's other hand in hers. She carefully guided the other in a sort of tango. The awkwardness diminished as their dances combined. Skylar's on-point rhythm with Jeanine's smooth gliding were a beautiful match. They carried on this dance until the very end of the song. At that point, Skylar's leg muscle had betrayed her again and she stumbled backwards, taking Jeanine with her.

The two females would have laughed it off, but there was something between them that couldn't be disregarded.

Skylark swallowed thickly as she felt the swells of Jeanine's breasts on her side. Jeanine blushed as she noticed their legs completely intertwined, Skylar's thigh against her crotch. Suddenly, the air seemed to get thicker and hotter. The two females looked into each other's eyes and felt the beat of their hearts against one another.

Their lips were just inches away from each other. Their body heat intermingled between the two.

They were so close.

So close…

"Sky! Your mom just called. She's wondering where you are."

The minute the light turned on and Micah's voice cut through the atmosphere, the two women shuffled away from each other and stood up.

Looking back at the doorway, Skylar could see Micah holding his house phone, despite the fact that he had hung up before he had entered the room.

She sighed "Does she want me to come home?"

"Considering how late it is and the tone in her voice, yes," said Micah.

Skylar held back a second sigh of frustration.

Jeanine put her hands in her pockets, disappointedly.

"Jean?"

The ink-haired woman looked up.

"Would you mind walking me home?"

Skylar was smiling and extending her hand towards Jeanine.

Again, the pale woman accepted the hand "Not at all."

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, that scene where Jean tucked Skylar in bed was a direct reference to the scene in Love Stage! when Ryouma kissed Izumi while he was sleeping. I know Ryouma's a big dork and probably didn't see anything dirty about that, but...the undertones, tho.


	6. Spumoni

"Just what is this?!"

Jeanine frowned at her manager's tone, despite the elder's authoritative tone as he thrust his cell phone in her face, the bright light shining against her squinting eyes "An outdated iPhone?" she drawled.

The Scot huffed in disapproval "Read the damn article."

Jeanine took the phone into her own hand and pulled it away from her face so that she could fully inspect the screen from a much more reasonable distance. It didn't take long after her eyes scanned the screen for her features to fall in disappointment.

On the screen was a picture of herself carrying Skylar to the car. Loud and obnoxious captions and symbols decorated the rather plain photo in a sense of scandal.

"Wait, they think Skylar is—?"

But again, the pale woman was cut off by John "Then you posted that tweet and made it even worse. Any hope of getting rid of this rumor is ruined!"

Jeanine opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. John continued to rant as the woman thought to herself " _But the tweet was just about reuniting with Skylar as a friend. I mean,, what we have isn't romantic…right?_ "

The fresh memory of Jeanine and Skylar's intimate moment in the living room thrust itself into the forefront of her mind. The ink-haired woman held her forehead in in her overwhelming bemusement "What _do_ we have?"

"A big _fookin'_ problem is what we have!" John scolded, his Scottish accent becoming more apparent.

Jeanine faltered a bit, unaware that her thoughts had become audible words "John…"

"No, you listen to me for once—!"

" _Isn't that what I've been doing this entire time?_ " Jeanine thought as she bitterly glared at the other.

"—You are forbidden from interacting with that boy again!" said John "No seeing him, no contacting him, and no goddamn Tweets about him! Do you understand?"

"John, Skylar isn't—"

"Do you understand?!" the Scot's hands slammed on the desk before him as he glared at the woman with anger in his green eyes.

Jeanine shook, but tried her best to keep her composure "Sir, listen. Skylar isn't what you think."

John huffed, seeming to have calmed down "If you don't want this career, by all means, that's fine by me," he said in a steady tone "If you'd rather trade the lifestyle I've given you for some superficial model who'll forget about you the next week, go right ahead. The door's right there."

The ink-haired woman swallowed thickly as her manager calmly pointed at the door behind her. She hadn't even realized that she had pushed the man so far. She was standing on the edge of a cliff by nothing but her toes. Any further and she could fall without a warning.

"Okay…" she just barely whispered "I understand."

* * *

The bass boomed through Skylar's heart. The tips of her toes just barely hovered over the pink cloud that was her stage. Before her, beautiful people cheered for her.

"They told me romance was dead, that I should go by my head. But they could never take out the spirit that lead me ahead. My heart beats with the passion of millions. And ain't nothin sweeter than the love of a billion."

A million pairs of hands clapped along to the beat riding out the end of Skylar's verse. She waited for the final bass drop that would signal the return of Micah's melody.

"Skylar! Skylar, guess what!"

Instead of her companion's song, the sound of Skylar's mother's voice reached her ears.

The daughter woke up with a gasp. The door opened just seconds later as Lisa ran into the room, her elated expression contrasting with the exhaustion on Skylar's face.

"Oh, you're awake. Perfect!" chirped the mother as she opened the blinds.

An animalistic growl rumbled in Skylar's throat as the sun's rays burned her eyes. Regardless, Lisa didn't seem to take notice.

"I just came back from High Tides and you won't believe what happened," the elegant woman beamed.

Skylar tried to respond, but could only manage a whimper.

" _Gilded Crown_ magazine saw your photo shoot for _Twist_ ," continued Lisa "And they've asked for you to model for their next fashion line."

This made Skylar's eyes snap open in disbelief, her brown orbs surrounded by irritated red veins.

Lisa, lost in her own fantasy, continued to ramble away "Now, I've already set up a date and time for the photo shoot. They're not coming over here, this time. Instead, we'll be meeting at another agency in Arizona. It's about a thirty minute drive—"

"M-Mom…!" the daughter finally found her voice, which came out as a scratchy rasp.

Regardless, Lisa only answered with a peachy "Hmm?"

Insulted by the unfettered response of her mother, Skylar scoffed "I thought we agreed that this was just a one-time thing, that I wouldn't have to do it again."

Lisa's mouth pursed into a straight line "Skylar honey…" she said, shaking her head "I know that's what we agreed on, but you have to think about the bigger picture. This goes beyond doing a simple favor for me. This is your future we're talking about."

Skylar grit her teeth together, resisting the urge to outright scream obscenities at the top of her lungs.

"I can't believe y…" the daughter started off "You always do this!"

This seemed to catch Lisa off-guard, as she could only blink in surprise "E-Excuse me?"

The polite naivety of the response only angered Skylar even more. Even in what was supposed to be a heated argument, Lisa simply couldn't drop her public decorum of elegance to reciprocate Skylar's anger.

"You never ask about what I want. You only care about your own vision!" the daughter growled as she thrust an accusing digit at her mother "You only want me to be in the limelight so that you can improve your reputation. Admit it!"

Lisa's upper lip stiffened, but the rest of her face remained unchanged "Skylar, you are being rash."

"No, just admit it!" the daughter was yelling now, her already reddish skin burning a fiery vermilion "You don't care about anyone but yourself. Your fame is all that matters to you! And you're too selfish to even think about what your family wants!"

The calm on Lisa's face was completely snatched away in a flash, leaving an angry grimace wrinkling the woman's face. Her figure trembled as she looked down her nose at Skylar "If that's what you think of me…" the ivory-skinned woman growled the beginning of a sentence, then huffed to relieve her bottled up rage "Fine," she said in a normal, composed voice "Don't take my offer. You can go ahead and run off with your little band. When you find yourself unemployed at the age of forty without a penny to call your own, you'll know why."

Skylar frowned "Trust me," her voice strained with emotions "That's not going to happen."

The young woman walked past Lisa, who allowed her to leave. Skylar exited her room and ventured downstairs. She was in the foyer when she felt the vibration of her phone. By reflex, the woman checked her cell phone.

Aron: Hey, I need you to…

The rest of the message went unread because Skylar pressed her finger down on the volume button to turn the phone completely silent.

" _I'm not in the mood to deal with him_ ," she thought.

* * *

_"I loved my mother with all of my heart, but that doesn't mean that we don't argue with people that we love. It doesn't mean that we don't get angry with the people that we love, or say things that we don't mean. What I did was debatably stupid at best. After storming out of the house, I went straight to Micah's to work on the song. Perhaps it was my spite that forced my soul onto the paper. Even when I presented it to Micah, he was impressed. We dived deep into the late hours of the night recording the song. Then the next morning, we listened to the final cut twice more for good measure before we headed off to meet Bella."_

* * *

The brunette woman sat in a silent prayer as the music flowed in through her ear buds. The CD player was held prisoner in her hand while the CD case lied open to show its emptiness. Micah and Skylar sat on the opposite side of the desk with baited breath as they watched for any response from the woman.

When they first came in, the two were mildly concerned when Bella chose to listen to their song using the CD player in her desk rather than actually going to the recording studio. Eventually, both shook off the feeling of worry, having Bella's smiling face and supporting voice to warm them.

Finally, Bella removed her earbuds and smoothly folded her hands over one another. The air was still as Bella's bespectacled brown eyes landed on the two adults. Her expression revealed none of the thoughts swimming through her mind, making it completely impossible to guess what statement would flow past her lips.

"Well," she said "It's clear that you two put a lot of effort into this. Is this your first song?"

"Second," Micah answered in confidence.

Bella nodded knowingly "Well, it certainly is impressive for a second song."

This little compliment lifted the clouds of Skylar's doubt "Thank yo—"

"But," Bella's voice cut through "This song isn't new to me."

Skylar's eyes widened in fear. She looked over to Micah, who simply gave a polite chuckle "Ms. Bella, if I didn't know any better, I'd fear you were accusing us of plagiarism."

Skylar's jaw tightened when she saw the woman's eyebrow raise. She had feared that, once again, Micah's subtle moments of sass had worsened a situation.

Bella smiled and gave a genuine laugh of her own "Well I assure you that there is no reason to fear that, Micah," she said "And, please, just call me Bella."

Skylar silently thanked the gods that the intimidating woman had responded so kindly.

"What I mean is that I've heard songs like this before. It isn't unique," Bella continued "In order to stand out in the music industry, you really have to reach your audience. But your song, your song was…"

* * *

"It's not as bad as it sounds, Skylar," said Micah as they walked outside of the building of High Tides.

"It's not bad at all," said the woman, brushing her hair back "She was just being honest."

Micah grinned "Well, you're taking this much better than I thought."

Skylar scoffed "You thought I would bummed out by a little constructive criticism?"

"She called our song artless, Sky."

The woman forced a smile, not looking at her companion "Yeah," her voice squeaking with an extreme lack of confidence.

Unfortunately, Micah bought into the act "Alright then," he said "Wanna get some Wendy's?"

"Ah, no…" Skylar said "I should really get home."

Micah, who had already started walking towards the fast food restaurant, said "Huh? Are you sure?"

"Yeah," she confirmed.

Then, she began her trek home without another word.

Micah watched for a moment before giving a shrug and continuing his own trek towards the fast food restaurant.

* * *

The woman rested her slumped figure on the swing set. Her tall figure didn't quite fit the seat meant for children. Her long legs were bent closely with her feet planted on the patch of thin dirt where many small feet before hers had scraped across. The cold links of the chains dug into her warm palms. The playground around her was dark blue as the warm summer night crept in on her. The lap of her jeans were dotted in the droplets that fell from her eyes.

"'scuse me, sir," two rough fingers reached out and tapped Skylar, who jumped and quickly wiped her tears.

"We've got report of a suspicious figure trespassing after hours. I'm afraid you're going to have to leave," the officer explained, looking down at Skylar with distaste.

"Suspicious figure?" were the first words to leave Skylar's mouth "Me?"

The police officer didn't respond. He simply studied the young woman.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I forgot this was a school playground," said Skylar.

The officer raised a brow "What's a guy like you doing out so late in a playground anyway?"

The question reminded Skylar of her previous sorrows, pushing forth a new wave of tears to rest on her eyelids. She held back the tears and shook her head "Just…taking a breather."

The man squinted at Skylar "Why don't you come with me?"

The youth's eyes jumped in surprise "Wait, what?"

"Sir, I need you to come with me," said the officer as he reached out for Skylar's arm.

"W-Wait, what did I do?" Skylar knew it was never in one's best interest to question the police, but right now, she wasn't thinking. She was just scared.

"Just come with me."

"But I said I would leave. What did I do wrong?"

"Come with me!"

The man grew more aggressive as he wrestled Skylar over to his police car.

"Officer, please, I don't understand! You're really scaring me. Please explain!" the youth didn't dare lose her temper and risk giving the man a real reason to accuse her of misconduct. However, she didn't like where this was going. Her mind was spinning and her previous emotions only made her panic worse. Just as Skylar was being pushed into the backseat, her sensibility broke and she swung.

The officer reeled back with a curse as the youth ran.

Skylar's hand moved to her fanny pack to pull out her phone, but she quickly knew that calling 911 wouldn't be an option. So she speed-dialed a random contact and hoped for the best.

" _Hey Skylar_."

"J-Jean!"

" _Whoa, what's going on? Are you running?_ "

"I need help! I don't recognize this neighborhood!"

" _Did you call the police?_ "

"No! Don't call them!"

" _What? Why not?_ "

"Just help me!"

" _O-Okay, name the first street you see_."

Skylar ducked into a bunch of bushes, trying her best not to make any noise in case the officer was able to keep up with her "I see…" she whispered, breathlessly "A street named Douglas Avenue."

" _Okay, you're not that far from my house. Stay right there and I'll come get you. Don't hang up_."

"Okay."

The shaken woman wasn't sure about staying in one place while her pursuer possibly looked for her. She was suddenly grateful that it was nighttime and that she could hide in the darkness. However, that meant the same for the officer. Skylar wondered just what made the man so desperate to arrest her, just why he was so hostile when she was being so civil. She decided not to dwell on that question until she was in complete safety.

Skylar began to think that perhaps Jeanine had exaggerated when she said she wasn't that far from her house. The minutes that ticked by crept on Skylar's back like meaty fingers. Every little noise or movement scared her. The sound of her own heartbeat and breathing sounded deafening to her. Her legs were numb and she feared the idea of having to run.

Eventually, she heard a car slowly patrolling the area " _Skylar, can you hear me? I'm driving around the block now_ ," Jeanine's voice hushed through the phone.

Skylar picked up the phone "I think I hear you," she said "I'm hiding behind some bushes."

Suddenly, a pair of headlights ghosted over the head of the bushes in question. Eager, Skylar lifted her head from her hiding spot. When a black car stopped right before her, she knew it was Jeanine. With a relieved sigh, Skylar began to step out of her hiding spot, but she stopped.

She saw the driver's car door open, but instead of the pale-skinned beauty, the blond-haired police officer hopped out.

Skylar gasped and turned to run away. She could feel the man chasing after her. She wanted to scream, but she knew she would just be wasting precious breath, or worse, aggravate the officer enough for him to silence her somehow.

"Skylar!"

The woman heard her name to her left. Around the corner, another car was parked with an open door. Inside, Jeanine's pale white face poked out of the darkness.

Skylar made a sharp turn and used the last of my energy to dash into the open door. She fell inside with a harsh thud and slammed the door closed behind her. Immediately, the car began to veer off and escape the scene. Whether or not the officer was following them still, she didn't know. As the car drove, she dreaded having to eventually leave the safety of the vehicle.

"Don't worry. I have body guards at home," Jeanine had been speaking for a while, but these were the first words that had reached Skylar's ears "Whoever that was would be unlucky to follow us."

"It was a police officer," finally said the breathless woman "He…he…kept—"

"Wait, a police officer?" questioned Jeanine.

Skylar swallowed "Yeah. At first, he just wanted me to leave the school playground because I looked like a "suspicious figure", but then he kept coaxing me to get in his car."

Jeanine frowned "That doesn't sound right at all."

Now that Skylar had retold the events, she, too, felt uneasy " _I had heard stories of people being harassed by the police without reason_ ," she thought " _Even though I'm a minority and a woman, I never imagined it happening to me_."

There was an uneasy silence in the car as they drove.

Jeanine finally spoke up again "Sorry I'm not talking much, it's just…I've never been involved in something like this. I don't even know what to say about this."

They drove up to a large house whose features were primarily hidden in the dark. Jeanine pressed a button behind her rearview mirror and the garage slowly opened.

"We'll call the police tomorrow," she said "Right now, let's just rest."

"Agreed."

* * *

Jeanine informed her bodyguards of the situation and stayed on alert. She also double checked the house alarm just for good measure.

Skylar called Marilyn and informed her that she was staying over at a friend's house, choosing to leave out the dramatic parts.

"I laid out some pajamas you can borrow on my bed. There's also some water in the mini fridge. I know you're thirsty after all that running," said Jeanine "If you need me, I'll be downstairs, taking a shower."

"Thanks," said Skylar.

Once in the downstairs bathroom, Jeanine could finally take a chance to breath a sigh of relief. The clothes she had put on when she got Skylar's call were already dirty from the sweat they had collected during her last performance. The clothes she wore during her concerts always smelled the worst. Even though there were much more important matters at hand, Jeanine dreaded the idea of Skylar making a judgement on her hygiene based on her hasty choice in attire.

The pale woman hopped in and out of the shower, only needing to rinse off the residual grime of her clothes. She then changed into a snug black night gown and let her hair loose from its hair tie.

Upon returning back up to her room, Jeanine made a note to knock "Everything alright?"

"Yeah, come in," Skylar's muffled voice said on the other side.

Jeanine did as told and was content to find Skylar sitting on the bed in the old white T-shirt and pajama shorts she had lent her. The woman had made herself comfortable on the bed and was currently channel surfing in the dark. Jeanine was just about to ask about the water when she saw the empty bottle nestled in her trash can.

"How're you feeling?" she asked.

Jeanine was relieved to hear Skylar say "So much better. I don't think I could thank you enough!"

"Pfft, s'nothing to thank me for," said Jeanine "That's what…I'm supposed to do."

There was an awkward pause in which the pale woman hesitated from saying " _That's what friends are supposed to do_."

" _I don't even know what we are_ ," she thought to herself for the second time that day.

She sat down beside Skylar and the two watched late night talk shows and sitcoms together. The tension passed along with the hours. Jeanine brought in various snacks such as pizza rolls and chicken nuggets to appease both herself and her guest. Soon, it was midnight, and the air because lucid.

"Well, I'm beat," Jeanine said as she lifted herself up from the bed. Fingers grazed her hand in an effort to catch her.

"Whoa, where are you going?" asked Skylar, perplexed.

Jeanine turned around "The guest room," she explained "I think after all the shit you went through, you deserve the luxury of my queen-sized bed."

Skylar chuckled "Don't think I'm gonna miss out on this opportunity," she then tugged Jeanine's arm, pulling the woman into bed with a confused gasp.

"What are you doing?" the hostess asked.

Skylar turned off the television "What?" she said "We're on same-bed-basis, right?"

This only further confused Jeanine "Same-bed-bas—what are you talking about?"

Skylar's grin fell into insecurity "I-I thought we both…like, were interested in each other…"

Jeanine's eyes widened. She had not realized that the woman before her had also reciprocated her feelings "I am! I mean, we are! I…I didn't know you felt the same way," she stammered "I thought you just wanted to be friends."

"Of course not, Jean!" laughed Skylar "I mean, I love being your friend, but I'd love being your girlfriend more," she intertwined her hand with Jeanine's and brought her face closer.

"Skylar, I…" she pulled back her hand "I can't," she said "After what I did to you that day, I just can't bring myself to touch you like that."

"But Jean, I already said I forgive you."

"You shouldn't have!" Jeanine suddenly snapped "I burst into your home after years of not talking to you just so I could ask you to drop your robe and confirm you were a girl. Skylar, that is nowhere near okay!"

The pale woman's voice shook around her words. In embarrassment, she turned her back to Skylar. In the dark, Skylar could see the glisten of tears in the corners of Jeanine's eyes.

A hand ran up the pale woman's arm, which was already coated in goosebumps.

"Jean," Skylar's voice came "I know you're glad that I forgave you."

The raven-haired beauty sniffled "I am," she admitted "That doesn't mean I feel like I deserve it."

"That's where you're wrong," continued Skylar in a nurturing tone "You do deserve to be forgiven, Jean. By yourself, too."

Jeanine turned to the other woman with confusion in her features "By myself?" she echoed.

"I mean that I'm not the only one who needs to forgive you," said Skylar "You need to forgive yourself, too."

Jeanine sighed, shaking her head "How could I after something like that?"

Skylar gave a shrug "Trust me, I've made a lot of dumb decisions in my life. Lying about being a man twice was one of them," she snarked "And I'd always cringe just from remembering those things, but then I realized something. We don't grow up if we don't make mistakes along the way."

"Skylar…" Jeanine's hand returned to the other woman's hand.

"There's one thing I can say," Skylar's voice softened "Meeting you was not a mistake."

Jeanine's other hand reached out and cradled Skylar's jaw. They looked at one another for a moment before their lips joined in a kiss.

It was chaste and short. The two stared at each other again after it had ended, a familiar mixture of wonder, desire, and happiness swimming between their gazes.

Again, their lips met. This time, Jeanine's hand clutching Skylar's hair while Skylar's arms cradled Jeanine's body. Eventually, the two slid vertically onto the bed where their bodies merged into the night's darkness.


	7. Flan

“So…”

“Ah…”

“…Yeah.”

“…Was it fun for you, too?”

“Oh yeah! Totally!”

“You’re not just saying that, are you?”

“No, not at all! It was great!”

Skylar and Jeanine lied side by side in bed, both only looking at the ceiling in the awkward atmosphere of the morning.

Jeanine nervously chuckled “Is it weird that neither of us were really the top or bottom?”

“Considering this isn’t a scripted romance movie, no,” Skylar laughed “If we were in a movie, we would’ve failed our roles horribly. We don’t even fit the Lipstick-Butch Lesbian role.”

Jeanine smiled “Looks like that one role in Action Pact really taught you a lot about film-making.”

“Nah, it’s just my mom. She works with actors and models all of the time,” claimed Skylar.

Jeanine looked over at Skylar “Really?”

“Yeah, she’s a stylist.”

“Wait,” Jeanine turned on her side so she was completely facing the other “Is your mom Lisa Lalit?”

“Yeah,” nonchalantly repeated Skylar.

“What?!”

“That’s how I got into Action Pact in the first place,” explained the Native American “That’s also how I got into that stupid photo shoot.”

Jeanine jokingly furrowed her brows “You got something to say about my band merch?”

“No, it’s just that my mom pulls me into that stuff so I can get famous,” explained Skylar.

“Oh,” Jeanine adjusted herself to get comfortable “Well that’s nice.”

“It would be if she were doing it for me,” sighed Skylar, crossing her arms over her blanket-wrapped chest “But she’s just selling me off as a product to improve her own image. She just uses the fact that I look androgynous to fit me in male roles.”

Jeanine’s face fell into seriousness “Is that why…”

“I made you think I was a guy? Yeah,” I said.

Jeanine looked down at her lover, sympathy lacing her eyes “That’s…I’m sorry,” she said “If I had known this was happening, I wouldn’t have given you such hell.”

“Don’t stress it. It’s not your fault,” said Skylar “I mean, lying about your gender may sound silly to some people, but after seeing people get Catfished that way, I’ve seen what a really horrible thing it is to do.”

Jeanine pulled her blankets closer to her body as she averted her eyes “Yeah, I, uh, I’ve been there before…”

Skylar looked over “You’ve been Catfished?”

“No,” said Jeanine “Heh, it’s kinda embarrassing really, but…after I made a Gay Rights speech in the middle of one of my concerts, my cousin told me that she was a transboy. She said that transphobics in her area were giving her a hard time, and that she was fired from her job, had her things stolen, and her house vandalized.”

Now it was Skylar’s turn to look at Jeanine in sympathy “Oh god, that’s terrible…!”

“She was lying.”

“…What?”

Jeanine rolled her indigo eyes “She lied about being a transboy so she could get sympathy points from me. She figured that since I’m the richest one in the family and I’m pro gay rights, she could siphon money out of me by saying she needed to pay for top surgery, T-supplements, and binders along with all of the other things she said she needed to pay for, like her house, bills, and stolen items. Let’s just say that when I saw her on Facebook standing in a Givenchy dress next to a Ferrari, I knew something was up.”

“Oh my god…!”

Skylar’s reaction earned an honest laugh from the other woman.

“Families can be crazy, huh?” snarked Jeanine.

“Tell me about it.”

* * *

“I’m sorry, sir, but unless you’re here to meet with one of our employees or make an appointment, you cannot be here.”

The irritated woman gave the paparazzo a pointed look as she stated this. In response, the man gave a disappointed frown “That’s ridiculous!”

“We can’t have any nosy paparazzi poking around in our studios,” defended the woman.

The darker skinned man smirked “And what makes you think I’m a paparazzo?”

The woman returned a sarcastic grin “Hmm, I don’t know. Maybe the camera in your hand and the notepad sticking out of your pocket?”

The man scoffed “What? This old thing?” he waved the camera around “I thought you would’ve understood—I’m the new photographer.”

The woman raised a brow “Are you?”

“Yes!” the man said with confidence “Richard Brighton, the photographer. Haven’t you heard?”

The woman blinked “I haven’t,” she then muttered “Then again, I don’t get informed about a lot of things,” the woman looked back at Richard “Who are you here to see?”

“Lisa Lalit,” he stated.

The woman’s eyes perked in familiarity “Oh, of course! She should be upstairs in room—“

“B25, I’ve been told,” finished Richard “Thank you, miss.”

“You’re welcome, sir,” said the woman “I’m sorry for the trouble.”

“Oh no, it’s alright,” said Richard as he began to walk away from the desk “I can’t admonish someone for doing their job.”

Richard knew that Jeanine Mackenzie was recently here to attend the photoshoot for her band’s new clothing line. Naturally, he was the first one to catch word of it. It surprised him—like it had with everyone else—when he heard that Aron Pearson would be modeling the clothes.

“Well, I guess to make a statement, sometimes you have to go all out,” Richard said to himself.

He quickly hushed himself when a brunette, bespectacled woman stepped out of the next room ahead, nearly swinging the door right in the poor man’s face. The woman didn’t even see him. She simply turned and walked down the hallway.

Richard stood, dumbfounded “ _I can’t believe…I can’t believe I just saw the famous music producer, Bella Donna_.” He looked into her room and stepped inside “ _Perhaps Jeanine Mackenzie was in here. Maybe she’s tired of her current boss? Considering leaving him?_ ”

Richard went straight to the woman’s desk, his fingers resting on the countless papers as he pondered how he should go about his exploration.

“Alright, I have a limited amount of time. Bella Donna could come back at any moment. I need to use this time wisely. And most importantly, I have to make sure I’m not seen by anyone else. Okay, I’m sure that if I look at these papers, someone as busy as Bella Donna wouldn’t notice if they’re out of place. So I should be able to—“

Click, click. Clack, clack. Click, click. Clack, clack.

Richard froze at the sound of two pairs of high heels approaching the the room.

The man’s eyes darted around the room manically before he swiftly dove into a closet on the far end of the room. Darkness enveloped him, with only a sliver of light through the scanty crease in the hinge of the door stretching over his body.

“…you hear anything just now?”

“I hear a lot of things in this building, Tara.”

Richard didn’t recognize the second voice. Hearing that her first name was Tara, the paparazzo couldn’t link it to a famous name that he deemed significant.

“So what did you think of that E-Claire song?”

“Hmm? “Eclair song”? What do you mean?”

“The one Lisa Lalit’s kid and his friend made yesterday. Their name was E-Claire, as in the letter “E” and then the name “Claire”. Kinda funny, really.”

The minute the stylist’s name tumbled out of Bella’s lips, a brilliant idea popped into Richard’s head, and the man pulled out his tape recorder “ _Even though it’s not about Jeanine, the conversation might turn that way eventually_ ,” he thought to himself “ _They were here on the same day, after all_.”

Bella snorted “Those two clowns? Tch, I didn’t even listen to their song.”

The other woman laughed “Are you serious?”

“Yes! I just turned the volume all the way and pressed play,” explained Bella “You should have seen their faces. Those two just sat there like they were watching the lottery numbers being called on TV!”

“Ohh,you certainly are a cheeky woman, Bella!”

“But of course, do you honestly think I’d let a colored duo into my music industry?” questioned the woman “I run a respectable business—and besides, I think the redskin is a tranny.”

For the first time in his life, the talkative paparazzi was speechless, not just verbally, but in his thoughts as well. He couldn’t believe it. The harsh words cut into his being like unforgiving daggers and sliced up his spirit.

“Ah, I knew I wasn’t the only one who thought so! The minute those two stepped in here, everybody was already gossiping about what a train wreck they were. How charitable of Lisa Lalit to help out minorities.”

“Well, one of them _is_ her child. It would hurt her image if she were shown neglecting him…or it—whatever it is.”

“Why would she even marry a redskin let alone have a child with one?”

“Oh he’s probably just a gold-digger, didn’t make enough money off of his casinos.”

The two women laughed heartily.

Anger and disgust festered in Richard’s body. He grit his teeth in an effort to contain his rotting emotions “ _I can’t believe what I’m hearing! This is the most vile, horrendous thing I’ve ever witnessed!_ ” he thought “ _I swear on my name, I will rectify E-Claire and everyone who has suffered under Bella Donna’s discrimination!…when I find out how to get out of this closet, that is._ ”

* * *

Morning merged into the early afternoon. The skies were just there right shade of blue.  The sounds of birds and squirrels began to fade away as the sounds of people emerging from their homes to begin their day grew louder. Jeanine and Skylar had been sitting on the patio of the former’s home for hours to watch this transition. They were leaning against each other’s backs in the plush patio couch, their legs hanging over the arms of the couch.

“So why did you agree to do something so crazy anyway?” questioned Jeanine.

“My mom promised that if I did that _one_ photo shoot for her, she’d take Micah and I to see the music producer upstairs so we could talk to her about E-Claire,” answered Skylar “I mean, yeah, I could have gone up there myself, but since my mom is already close to her, she could give a good word in for us.”

“Oh,” said Jeanine “So how’d it work out?”

The other woman chewed on her lip as the memory of the previous day came back to her slowly.

Puzzled by the silence, Jeanine spoke up again “Skylar?”

Not realizing that she had been consumed by the memory, the Native American snapped out of her reverie “Huh? Oh, um, y’know what? She didn’t really give a definitive answer. I guess she didn’t really know what to think, herself.”

Jeanine shrugged “If I had a nickel for every time that happened to me…”

Unwilling to continue with the topic, Skylar suddenly said “Man, you wouldn’t believe how insane that photo shoot was for me.”

The pale woman smiled in intrigue “Oh yeah! I only got to see the final product of the whole thing,” she noted “You’ve gotta tell me everything that happened behind the scenes. What was it like dressing in drag?”

Skylar laughed, happy that the other bought the bait “Nothing like it was in Action Pact! I couldn’t get away with just putting on a suit. They had to put me in a binder.”

“Yikes…” Jeanine hissed.

“They even had extra padding set aside in case the incline of my waist was too small. Luckily, Mom made sure to get clothes in a bigger size so my figure wouldn’t show,” continued Skylar “The binder was enough as it is. It was so suffocating that I got overheated halfway through the shoot.”

“Is that when you left and everyone freaked out?” asked Jeanine.

“Yeah. I had to go back to the dressing room to get some water and change into a sports bra,” explained Skylar “But the craziest thing happened on the way back.”

“Do tell.”

“Remember that PlayGirl model, Aron Pearson?”

Jeanine laughed “I’m pretty sure he only modeled for them once, but yes, go on.”

“Apparently he’s gay,” continued Skylar “Because he tried to hit on me when I went back to the dressing room!”

“Oh my god! Seriously?!”

“Yes!”

Jeanine guffawed “That’s nuts! Not the “being gay” part, but just the fact that he actually tried to…”

“I know, I know, but it gets even crazier from there!” pressed Skylar “So I freaked out and started to run away, but my pants fell down and I ended up tripping—told you those clothes were baggy. Out of all of the men’s clothes I was wearing, I didn’t even think about changing into men’s underwear.”

Jeanine gasped “Wait, so Aron saw…”

“My panties? Yes, and he found out that I was a girl,” concluded Skylar, her confidence boosted by how much she was shocking Jeanine.

“Oh shit, man. How’d he react?” asked the pale woman.

“Not well,” snickered Skylar “He threatened to tell everyone and sell out my mom.”

Jeanine clicked her tongue “What a dick.”

“I know. The only way I’ve managed to keep him quiet about it is by running errands for him and…” Skylar’s throat tightened up as she started listening to herself.

Jeanine, unable to see the other’s fear, asked “Is that why you were dropping off that stuff at his house?”

“Yes…” Skylar stood up, Jeanine almost falling behind her “And that’s also why I’m about to ruin my mom’s career if I stick around any longer…”

“Huh? Skylar where’re you going? Sky?”

* * *

In the man’s hand, his phone sang out its old hackneyed dial tone.

“ _The number you have reached is not available. Please leave a message at the tone_.”

Aron dropped his phone onto his lap, too frustrated to even be bothered hanging up.

The doorbell rang, and the man could honestly say that he knew exactly who it was.

The Spaniard opened the door, immediately crossing his arms over his chest ina tired fashion without a word. He stared down at the two females like a father waiting to hear the excuse of his unruly children.

“Okay, okay, before you say anything, I can explain…” defended Skylar as she pushed her hands out.

“I’m sure,” passively replied Aron.

“You see, the first time you wanted me to run the errands, Jean’s friend was trying to hit on me because he thought I was a dude, right?” In this moment, the woman mentioned slipped a “Dylan is really gay; you have no idea,” to support Skylar’s rambling “Yeah, so I freaked out and left the mall and went straight home because I couldn’t let him see me using the women’s bathroom and I really had to pee. Then the second time you needed me, I was mad at my mom because she signed me up for—“

“You know what? I’m going to stop you right there,” Aron interrupted, pinching the bridge of his nose in impatience “You clearly don’t have the capability of running a few small errands.”

“Aron, please, I can do something else for you—”

“Diablos no!” the man cried out, his accent becoming more apparent with his irritation “If I can’t trust you to buy aftershave and shampoo, what makes you think I can trust you with anything else? Having that said, I shouldn’t have to hold up my end of the deal since you won’t hold up yours.”

“But you said I had three chances!” defended Skylar.

“Tch, you were already on your second strike. At this rate, I didn’t have the patience to just wait until you’d hit the third strike,” said Aron “This is the real world, puta. If you were to screw up on the job like this, you would be fired.”

“B-But I…” Skylar placed her hands on the sides of her head, as if to gain stability “What am I going to do? The tabloids are gonna tear us apart…We’ll never hear the end of it. Nobody will hire my mom ever again, and she’ll lose her job, and…and…”

Jeanine held the woman in her arms “Hey, hey, we’ll fix this,” she soothed, in great contrast to her usual brusque voice.

Aron’s expression softened as he watched the two.

As if the pale woman hadn’t spoken, Skylar continued “No, this all happened because of my own incompetence. If I had just handled everything responsibly, none of this would have happened,” the Native American sniffled “It’s no wonder my mom tries so hard to dictate my life…” in an instant, tears streamed down her face “It’s because I’m a mess on my own!”

“No, no, no, no, Skylar that’s not true!” Jeanine insisted, panicked at the sight of her lover sobbing.

Almost immediately, Aron begged “Oh no, please, please don’t cry. I can’t stand to see girls cry.” He covered his mouth as if he would become sick, the pain etched in his feature outmatching the panic in Jeanine’s.

The pale woman frowned at the man “You don’t have any room to complain!”

“I-I know, I’m sorry, Skylar. I’m sorry! Please don’t cry. I’ll, I’ll drop this whole thing. I promise! I won’t tell anyone about the photo shoot,” Aron rambled.

The Native American gave a sniffle as the last of her tears flowed “You-You’re serious?” she whimpered.

“Yes, yes I am,” Aron sighed, his figure still trembling in concern “This whole thing…it was horrible of me to even do this. I didn’t even consider your side of things. You’re going through a lot at your age and you’re overwhelmed enough as it is without me taking advantage of one little mistake.”

Aron then took a breath to steel himself, and spoke slowly “Skylar, I hardly know you, but one thing I can assure you is that you’re not a mess. Making mistakes is a part of life, and it’s okay.”

Again, Skylar sniffled, trying to steady her voice “Thank you…”

“There’s no need to thank me,” said Aron “I shouldn’t have started this in the first place. I mean, if anyone here is a mess, it’s me. Honestly, what was I thinking?” Aron sighed “I should have listened to my friends when they told me I’ve been a jerk recently.”

“Recently?” questioned Jeanine “You mean you’re actually a good guy?”

“As hard as it is to believe, yes,” grimly said Aron “Call it a—how do you say it—Freudian excuse, but they say it’s because I’ve been lonely for too long,” he then chuckled “While I admit that I have been seeking a good man, I doubt that’s really the solution to my frayed nerves.”

Jeanine suddenly smirked “I beg to differ.”


	8. Macaron

The next few days, Skylar and Jeanine spent almost every waking moment with one another. They couldn't help but be fascinated by each other. Every conversation they had revealed more about themselves. They were as giddy as two chittering girls at a slumber party. The place that they loved to hang out the most was Jeanine's patio, where they would relax on the cozy cyan couch. There, they could spend the day talking while they watched the neighborhood in motion.

"Isn't it funny how neither one of us had to say "Hey! Now that we banged, you wanna get to know each other now?" We just…" Jeanine snapped her fingers "Hit it off?"

Skylar laughed "You'd think with the crazy way we met, our relationship wouldn't have started so smoothly."

Red flushed to Jeanine's cheeks as she smiled.

"What?" questioned Skylar.

The pale woman tried to conceal her shyness "It's so weird hearing that we're seriously in a relationship—good weird, though!"

The Native American gave a relieved sigh "I thought it was just me," she said "This is my first relationship, actually."

"Seriously?" Jeanine questioned in surprise.

Skylar rolled her eyes "When you look like a guy, not many people find interest in you."

Jeanine's indigo eyes went downcast in uncertainty "Y'know, it's weird…I don't really have a preference, but once I get to really know someone, it's like…" she paused "It's hard to explain."

Skylar perked up in interest "Wait, so you're demisexual?"

Jeanine's eyes widened "Yeah!" she confirmed "Wow, I've never been able to explain demisexuality to people. I always had to paraphrase it so people won't think I'm just making it up!"

"I totally understand. When I tell people I'm pansexual, they think it's the same as being bi," agreed Skylar "I mean, I can see where the misunderstanding comes from, but there's more than two genders, y'know."

Jeanine stretched her arms above her head "Man, a demi and a pan, huh? Guess we can't be called a lesbian couple, then."

"True."

For Skylar, it seemed things had finally calmed down. She felt free to relax.

"Felt" being the key word.

* * *

_BELLA DONNA RACISM SCANDAL!_

_BELLA DONNA'S RACIST REMARKS!_

_BELLA DONNA REVEALED TO BE A RACIST?_

Those were the headlines that flooded Skylar's vision as she stood in line at the convenience store and gazed at all of the magazines displayed for customers like herself. She blinked, unable to comprehend what she was seeing. The faces on the magazines were undoubtedly the music producer she had spoken to, but somehow, she just couldn't believe it.

"Sir? Sir, you're next in line."

Skylar tore her gaze away from the magazines to regard the cashier who was waiting on her. She quickly grabbed the three magazines up front and placed them alongside the package of chocolate pretzels that she had initially come in for.

After the cashier scanned the items and told Skylar the total price, he was able to study the Native American more.

"Hey, haven't I seen you before?" he questioned "Aren't you that guy who modeled the band merchandise for Stone Hearts?"

"Huh?" Skylar hesitated, not sure whether or not she wanted to be bothered with the topic at the moment "Uhm, no."

"Oh, sorry," apologized the cashier "You look just like him. Have you heard what that music producer said about him? How she wouldn't look at his work because he was Native American?"

Skylar's heart dropped to the pit of her stomach. The magazine covers had already told her that Bella was being put under fire for racist remarks, but she didn't know those remarks were about her.

"What?" Skylar asked in a stern tone.

The cashier shrank under her heated gaze "Y-Yeah…I'm not comfortable repeating what she said, b-but it was pretty horrible."

" _That's why she_ …" Skylar grit her teeth " _Son of a bitch!_ "

Although the youth hadn't vocalized her thoughts, the cashier gave a heavy sigh "I can't imagine what Lisa Lalit must be feeling right now," he said "I have a son at home, too. If someone denied him a job because of the color of his skin…" The man shook his head "It's a nightmare every parent with a child of color has. Sometimes you just wish you could give them a steady job and lifestyle yourself, y'know?"

The cashier's last statement floated about between Skylar's ears. Her angry grimace melted away as the words sank deeper into her mind.

"Ah well, I shouldn't expect you to understand since you're too young to be a father," said the cashier.

"Yeah…" Skylar remarked absentmindedly as she took her shopping bag "You can keep the change."

The cashier halted his movements and closed his fingers around the coins "Oh, thank you, sir. Have a good day!"

"You too," Skylar began to walk away, but then stopped and turned around "I'm a woman by the way."

The cashier's face fell into a dumbfounded gaze. Skylar didn't wait for him to respond before she casually stepped out of the store, whistling a soft tune.

* * *

"Honey, please, please calm down. At least have breakfast first. You just spent all night at a fashion show. You should really get some sleep."

Haussen Lalit nervously pleaded with his wife as she angrily tugged on a pair of jeans while muttering to herself "That uncultured white trash thinks she can speak of my child that way? _My_ child? Ohoho! When I come down there, there will be hell to pay. Do you hear me? Hell!"

Skylar had just entered the house as the resounding sounds of her mother's stubborn footsteps pounded in the ceiling above her. Naturally, she froze at the unfamiliar sound.

" _Is there a burglar?_ " she wondered.

Her question was answered when Lisa Lalit stomped down the stairs like an angry teenager. No, she _looked_ like an angry teenager, in every way possible. Her wavy black hair fell down her back, uncombed and lacking its shine. Her usual bright day dress was replaced with ragged jeans and a baggy Nirvana shirt.

"Where are my shoes?" she asked no one in particular.

"M-Mom?!" Skylar gasped, the chocolate pretzel she had been munching on falling out of her mouth "What's going on? Are you sick?"

"Oh I'm just fine, sweetie," said Lisa, still scanning the floor for something to cover her bare feet "I'll be even better once I give that ignorant hick a piece of my mind!"

Skylar watched as her mother darted for a pair of summer sandals next to the coat rack.

"Lisa, let's just take a moment to calm down, maybe change into something more…reasonable," stated Haussen as he patted his daughter's shoulder "I mean, you haven't worn that shirt since you were pregnant with Skylar."

Lisa paused, then looked down at herself as she finally came to notice the hastiness of her actions "Hm, I guess it would be in my best interest to…give this some thought first," she said, her voice returning to its normal calm demeanor.

She then looked at her husband and child, who still looked a bit unsure "After all, they always say you should never post anything on the internet when you're angry. So why would you do it in real life, right?" she tried to joke, giving a smile and a shrug.

"Y-Yeah," chuckled Skylar.

Haussen then moved over to his wife "Come on, why don't I run you a bath and you can just catch up on your sleep. If you want, Marilyn can make you your favorite fruit smoothie when you wake up."

Lisa gave a sleepy grin "You're so good to me, Haussen," she sighed "I'm sorry I acted so uncouth."

"No need to apologize," reassured the man "After all, this is our child we're talking about," he gave Skylar a wink over Lisa's shoulder as he guided her back up the stairs.

The youth watched in silence as her parents ascended to the upper level of the house.

After they were gone, she turned back to where she dropped her pretzel stick and picked it up. She made her way to the kitchen to throw it in the garbage can. Skylar paused and held up the bag of magazines in her hand.

In moments, pages containing Bella Donna's face fell into the garbage can, accompanied by the sounds of paper ripping.

"No use throwing all of money away over a scandal."

* * *

Richard laughed pridefully at his success "I tell you, Mata, being stuck in that closet for four hours was a nightmare!"

He was talking to the older Indian woman sorting the CDs behind her counter "I can imagine," she assured "But I'm not surprised. You'll go to any lengths to get a job done."

Richard puffed out his chest in pride "Of course. That's how any job should be tackled: with full force!"

The woman gave a satisfied sigh as she stood up from the neatly organized row of CDs before her, and dabbed the sweat from her brow using her bandana "You've done such a wonderful thing, Richard," she said "I see that girl, Skylar, come into my music store almost every day—"

Before she could give her next statement, the son gasped "You do?"

The woman nodded "She's very passionate about being a musician, and she's such a lovely, charming young woman. To think she would have been denied her dream because of her race…" she paused, then looked at her son "But you prevented that from happening."

Richard blinked in awe "I…did?"

Again the woman nodded "You gave that woman and her friend a future," she said "And for that, I am so proud of you."

The young man smiled at the sweetness of his mother's tone, the weight of her words bringing moisture to his eyes. He had always spoken big words, but he had always been told that they were mere fabrications. Now he was being told that he had actually done something extraordinary, that his achievements were a great reality.

"Thank you, Mataji."

* * *

When Micah opened the door, he expected to encounter the two girl scouts that he had seen offering cookies to the neighbors across the street. So when he opened the door with his wallet in hand and a clever "Why yes, I would love a box of thin mints," Jean, Skylar, Neal, and Dylan were very confused.

"I would love some too, but that's not what we're here for," said Skylar.

"What the…?" Micah then shook himself out of his surprise "Well, I certainly wasn't expecting you all. What brings you to the neighborhood?"

Dylan spoke this time "Like the rest of the world, we heard about the Bella Donna scandal and wanted to check on you," he explained "Also, we wanted to help you get back at her."

Micah raised a brow "What do you mean "get back at her"?" he questioned.

"Only by making a bomb-ass collaboration between E-Claire and Stone Hearts!" Jeanine declared.

Micah gave a surprised laugh "Seriously? You guys want to work with us?"

"Of course," assured Neal "You guys are really dedicated to your music. It'd be an honor to collaborate with you."

Micah's delighted grin stayed on his face searched for the proper words to express his feelings. His shocked joy was like that of a poor man winning the lottery "Wow, I'm…I'm speechless," he stepped to the side to let the youths inside "Well, come on in! I certainly won't turn down an offer like that!"

* * *

Even as the two music groups brainstormed within that house, E-Claire was already rising in popularity. Not only did the public feel scorn towards Bella Donna, but also pity for the rejected duo. In the few days that the scandal had surfaces, both videos on the E-Claire Youtube channel spiked exponentially in views. Of course, that did not mean the reception was all praise. Most people criticized it for being "typical pop music" with "bubblegum lyrics".

"Well that's to be expected," Micah said when Dylan came to him with this news "We have to deal with hipsters that complain about "being born in the wrong era" and moody emos who only listen to music with a dark undertone."

"Ugh, I hate that!" Jeanine griped from the other side of the room "A big chunk of our fanbase is a bunch of pessimists that think hating everything makes them edgy. I remember they gave me shit because I said I liked Katy Perry and would love to hang out with her."

Skylar, who sat on the floor, shrugged "Yeah, anything with a pop vibe doesn't really bode well with them, especially if they're love songs or feminine," she said "It's the hipsters you gotta worry about, though. I mean, sometimes they're right about how music was better in the past."

"People in the 50's said that about 40' music. People in the 40's said that about 30's music," said Neal, who was sitting at a desk facing a window "It's all a part of Juvenoia; the preconception that new things won't be as good as the old things."

Skylar couldn't help but stare at Neal's back in silence.

Jeanine sassed "And the only reason he knows that is because he used to be a hipster back in grade school."

Neal shot an embarrassed, yet dangerous look over his shoulder.

Dylan, who sat close enough to see this action, stated "Hey man, you live and you learn."

Skylar tapped her chin wordlessly, but her silence didn't stem from the same bemusement as when Neal made his unfittingly profound statement.

"This seems like…I mean…" she paused, trying to gather her thoughts "If your fans see you working with us, won't they be upset?"

Jeanine looked over at Skylar "What d'you mean?"

Skylar leaned against the couch behind her "I mean, Micah brings the K-pop flavor to E-Claire, and I give the hiphop style. That's two genres a lot of music lovers, well, don't like," she tried to explain "I don't want to ruin your fame by making your fans…"

Skylar trailed off as she noticed the three members of Stone Hearts gawking at her. Their faces each held an expression far from serenity, that much she could tell.

"Sky, who cares about fan reaction?" Jeanine scoffed as if it were obvious "We're working with you because we think you're talented and we like you!"

"Yeah, this is our decision as a band," said Neal "Our fans don't have to agree with everything we do. It's okay if they don't. It's part of being an artist."

"Plus, it's not like we're doing anything offensive like Bella," Dylan added before he casually began to sang "And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, shake."

Jeanine shook her head with a grin "There he goes again," she sighed "When working with Dylan, expect him to randomly finish his sentences with Taylor Swift lyrics."

"It means I'm feeling inspired!" argued the man in question.

After a lighthearted laugh between the five youths, Neal asked "Hey Skylar, when we credit you, do you still want people to see you as a male? I mean, with the photo shoot and all."

"Don't need to, Neal. I already planned to do another photo shoot as a woman next week," announced Skylar.

Micah looked over at the woman in surprise "Wha—you're serious? What about your mom? Won't that hinder her career if people find out she dressed you in drag so you could model some clothes?"

"We talked it over this morning," explained Skylar "We figured we'd get an easy pass since this whole thing with Bella has given Mom a lot of sympathy from the public. And if that doesn't happen, Mom said she's willing to own up to it."

"Does that mean things…are cool between you and your mom?" carefully asked Jeanine.

"Oh yes, definitely!"

* * *

Lisa sighed happily after taking a refreshing swallow of her bright yellow smoothie. A white robe with gold trimmings encased her body. A champaign colored towel held her damp hair in a cocoon above her head.

The woman was intrigued when Skylar emerged from the kitchen with the breakfast tray her maid usually carried.

"Ooh, what's this?" Lisa asked.

Skylar set the tray on the table and seated herself next to Lisa "I decided to give Marilyn a break, and serve our breakfast, myself," she said as she set their plates before them.

Naturally, she gave Lisa her elaborate dish of a vegetable omelet and pineapple crepes. Skylar was satisfied with her simplistic small stack of pancakes with cherry syrup.

"Why thank you, Skylar," Lisa said "I'm absolutely starving."

After a few moments of eating in silence, the daughter spoke up "Mom, I'm sorry about what I said."

"Hm?" Lisa swallowed her food "What do you mean?"

Skylar averted her gaze, trying to keep her words steady "When I got mad at you that morning because you had another photoshoot for me. I never apologized for all the mean things I said," she bit her lip to keep guilt from moistening her eyes "I'm really sorry."

The few seconds that passed before Lisa spoke felt like years. Skylar could have never predicted Lisa's response, so when she heard it, she was rendered speechless.

"Oh that? I forgot all about it!" Lisa waved off "Listen Skylar, as a woman who's constantly involved in the media, I've faced a lot of criticism. Being called "selfish" is child's play to me," she then grew a more serious expression "But you have reason to say what you said. I wasn't being fair."

Lisa glanced up at the ceiling and said "You're not the only one who had to put me in my place. Your father had to tell me, himself, that I need to remember to be your mother, not your manager."

"But, but I understand now!" countered Skylar "You just wanted to make sure I was successful. You were only trying to help me."

"But I wasn't taking your feelings into consideration," Lisa said "Your future is important, and parents should always help make their children succeed, but that doesn't mean we should take complete control. It doesn't mean we should make our children unhappy just for the sake of success," Lisa sighed "And no matter how much money they have, or how many celebrities they know, they're not really successful if they're not happy with what they do for a living."

Skylar was rendered speechless again. When Lisa looked at her, she saw a familiar face of wonder and amazement. It was the same face she had seen her daughter make years ago when she was just a young girl exploring the world.

"So, I'm sorry, too," said Lisa "And whatever decision you make for your future, I will support it."

A grin of genuine happiness spread over Skylar. She squealed and hugged Lisa "Thank you, thank you, thank you! I love you, mom! I love you!" she laughed joyfully as Lisa returned the hug "I want to do something special for you. I want to do one last photo shoot."

After releasing their hug, Lisa gave her daughter a confused look "Skylar, honey, no. I don't want you to have to go through that again."

"But wait, it'll be different! Something we can all agree on."

* * *

The next week, Skylar was back in High Tides agency. A satisfactory round of camera flashes painted her bikini-clad figure as she flashed a beautiful grin.

"Beautiful, darling, beautiful!"

Flash, flash, flash.

"Perfect! Right there."

Behind the cameras, Katherine beamed "Mrs. Lalit, Skylar is absolutely stunning! Being able to convincingly model as both a male and a female like a professional drag star? And at such a young age?" Katherine shook her head as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing "Just like her mother, Skylar really knows how to wow the public!"

"Why thank you," said the mother "I'll be sure to tell her how much you liked her idea. She'll be glad to hear it."

"I can certainly see a modeling career ahead of her," said Katherine "Such a gift would be a shame to waste."

Lisa gave a sly grin in the blonde's direction "Kesha Rose has a very high IQ, but she chose to become a pop star. How a person uses their talent, if at all, is up to them."

Katherine turned to the other woman in confusion "Huh? How does that relate to what I said?"

"Skylar may make a good model, but that's not what she wants to be," explained Lisa "And since that's the case, she's not obligated to get a modeling career."

Katherine nodded in comprehension "I see," she said "Well, whatever career she chooses, I wish the best for her."

Lisa gazed at her daughter in admiration "I'll be sure to tell her that, too."

Farther behind in the room, away from the fuss, Micah and the members of Stone Hearts sat on the couch against the wall.

"I feel a bit voyeuristic watching this," admitted Neal.

Jeanine jokingly elbowed him in the side "Ah, don't be such a prude, man. When you go to the beach, there are tons of chicks in bikinis that are way more exposing than this."

"Well, it looks like no one's gonna mistake Skylar's gender ever again," Micah stated with a satisfied grin "I know she's happy."

Dylan checked his cell phone briefly and announced "Well guys, I must get going."

"Oh yeah, you did say you had to leave early," commented Neal.

"Yup," Dylan confidently adjusted his jacket as he stood up from the couch "I've got a date with the one and only Aron Pearson.

Both Micah and Neal gave a flabbergasted "What?!" even though Dylan was already walking out of the room.

Jeanine smiled "I hooked him up."

"You did?!" questioned Neal.

"Why?!" asked Micah.

Jeanine shrugged "Aron seemed like he needed some good lovin'. Who better to give him that than a horndog like Dylan?"

"Oh my god, Jean…"

"What? You know I'm right!"

* * *

[Skylar]

" _They told me romance was dead, that I should go by my head. But they could never take out the spirit that lead me ahead. My heart beats with the passion of millions. And ain't nothin' sweeter than the love of a billion._ "

[Jean]

" _And all the kids running down the street, teens are stirring up a beat. I won't give up my daydreams until you confess to your own love. My mistakes become funny again. My heartaches come from experience, yeah_."

[Micah]

" _Whoa, I guess I got my just desserts. I had my cake and now I get to eat it, too. I've got a sugar rush to rock our world. Whoa, I guess I got my just desserts._ "

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Mata/Mataji" is Hindi for "mom".
> 
> Thank you all for reading! I hope you enjoyed the story!


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